Madonna and Child with the Milk Soup
Gerard David, 1510
The Madonna and Child with the Milk Soup is an oil on panel by Gérard David, a painter of the Early Netherlandish tradition, dated to 1510 and of modest size, likely made for private devotion. The scene is set in a domestic interior with a contemporary look, far from the gold backgrounds of earlier religious painting. Mary, shown half-length, has long fair hair falling over her shoulders beneath a sheer veil, her expression tender and maternal, as she holds the child on her lap and feeds him with a small wooden spoon. Through the window a northern landscape opens onto a village and a river where an animal is drinking. On the table and shelves sit everyday objects such as a book, a basket, bread, a bowl of milk, an apple and a knife, which readings of symbolism connect with the Eucharist and the Passion of Christ. The composition was repeated in several versions, and the Lombard influences, probably derived from a model attributed to Leonardo, can be seen in the handling of the figures.
- Painter
- Gerard David
- Date
- 1510
- Medium
- oil paint, panel
- Dimensions
- 41 × 32 cm
- Museum
- Palazzo Bianco, Genoa
- Movement
- Early Netherlandish painting
- Genre
- religious art
- Depicts
- Milk soup, Mary, Christ Child
More works by Gerard David
