Virgin And Child – Italian School, Late 16th Century – Workshop Of Bernardino Campi (attrib.)

A remarkable work depicting a Virgin and Child, created by a painter of the Italian School of the late 16th century, most likely Lombard, and attributable by its stylistic characteristics to the circle of Bernardino Campi (Cremona, 1522-1591).

In a composition imbued with gentleness, the Virgin is seated, adorned with a full, deep red drape, topped with an olive-green mantle. Her protective gesture, delicately placed on her chest, complements that of the Infant Jesus, standing at her side, offering a sensitive and almost familiar vision of divine motherhood.

Medium: Oil on canvas, doubled support. Stretcher: 17th-century wood.
Framing: Gilded wooden frame decorated with flamboyant Gothic motifs (posterior, visible defects).
Pigments: Use of crimson reds, earthy greens, golden ochres, and lead whites. Application in thin layers and superimposed glazes.

Through the refined treatment of the faces, the delicacy of the flesh, and the luminous chromaticism of the background, this work evokes numerous similarities with the workshop of Bernardino Campi, a central figure of the Cremonese Late Renaissance, as well as with certain works by Giulio Campi, his elder brother. The graceful Mannerism perceptible in the Child's swaying hips and the Virgin's posture also evokes the Venetian influences of this period (stylistic proximity to Palma il Giovane).
The iconography of the Virgin and Child underwent an evolution in the 16th century towards a more human and sensitive representation, in line with the aesthetic prescriptions of the Counter-Reformation.
This work fits perfectly into this tradition, probably intended for a private domestic oratory, as evidenced by its modest dimensions and ornamental frame.

Condition: Antique canvas, lined. Some visible old restorations. Slightly oxidized varnish. Old damage to the frame (Gothic, 19th century).

Dimensions: Canvas size: 39 cm x 25 cm
Total size with frame: approximately 53 cm x 33 cm

A work representative of the Lombard Mannerist school, at the crossroads of Cremonese elegance and Venetian influence. Of particular interest to lovers of late Renaissance Italian painting and collectors of sacred art.

Very careful shipping.

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