Virgin and Child with the Young Saint John the Baptist
c. 1560
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
79.5 × 90.5 cm (31 1/4 × 35 5/8 in.); Framed: 103.2 × 115.3 × 13.7 cm (40 5/8 × 45 3/8 × 5 3/8 in.)
Classification
oil on canvas
Department
Painting and Sculpture of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
109323
Art Historical Context
In the serene glow of *Virgin and Child with the Young John the Baptist* (c. 1560), Jacopo Bassano captures a tender moment of divine intimacy. Painted in oil on canvas, this 79.5 × 90.5 cm work exemplifies the Venetian Renaissance master's ability to blend sacred reverence with earthy realism. Bassano, active in the mid-16th century amid the Counter-Reformation, drew from Titian's influence while infusing his scenes with pastoral warmth and dramatic chiaroscuro lighting, late Renaissance mannerism and emerging Baroque naturalism. The composition centers the Virgin Mary cradling the Christ Ch...
About the Artist
Jacopo Bassano
Son and student of Francesco Bassano I. He studied with Bonifazio de' Pitati in Venice, but returned to Bassano upon his father's death. Jacopo is best known for landscapes and genre scenes.