Virgin and Child (1485/91): Artwork and History

Virgin and Child (1485/91) is in the Art Institute of Chicago collection. The museum lists its creator attribution as Workshop of Andrea Mantegna Italian, 1431-1506.

The work and its context

The Art Institute of Chicago describes the work:

The painter Andrea Mantegna’s engravings have been at the center of much art-historical controversy. Existing documents suggest that he commissioned other artists to engrave some of his prints for him, and that other engravings may have been made from Mantegna drawings. This monumental image of the humble Virgin Mary huddled with the infant Christ on the ground is one of the closest to Mantegna's engraving style. Whether or not he engraved it himself, the powerful diagonal strokes, the expressive features of the figures, and the Madonna's sculptural drapery proclaim the work's master.

Object facts

• Title: Virgin and Child
• Date: 1485/91
• Artist attribution: Workshop of Andrea Mantegna Italian, 1431-1506
• Place of origin: Italy
• Medium: Engraving in black on buff laid paper
• Dimensions: Image before remargining: 22.8 × 23.5 cm (9 × 9 5/16 in.); Sheet: 26.5 × 25 cm (10 7/16 × 9 7/8 in.)
• Type: Print
• Department: Prints and Drawings
• Reference number: 1933.800

Collection credit

Gift of Mrs. Charles Netcher in memory of Charles Netcher II

View the original

Explore the artwork in the Art Institute's collection, including its image and the museum's current catalogue details.

The description above is credited to the Art Institute of Chicago and reused under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0; HTML formatting has been converted to plain text. Other catalogue metadata and the public-domain image are provided under CC0 1.0.