the madonna and the virgin.

We went to the National Gallery last week and were asked to compare two paintings of our choice. One painting had to be from the Medieval time period, and the other from the Renaissance.

Here are the paintings and below is what I wrote about them. Please forgive me, I am no art major.... enjoy :)

The Garvagh Madonna - Raphael

(my selection from the Renaissance)

Coronation of the Virgin by Bernardo Daddi

(my selection from the Medieval time period)

In the National Gallery, I chose two different paintings, one of each from the medieval world and the Renaissance. The painting I chose from the medieval world was Coronation of the Virgin by Bernardo Daddi and the painting from the renaissance was The Garvagh Madonna by Raphael. Both these paintings focused on Christ. However, Daddi’s depiction of Christ was shown from an older age where as Raphael showed Christ as a baby. Both paintings also involve one particular woman. Perhaps this woman was the most important woman in His life. In one it was the virgin, in the other it was the Madonna, however you spell it out, it was His mother.

Colors were important and symbolic aspects of both paintings. In the Coronation of the Virgin, Christ is wearing a blue robe, which shows celestial glory. In The Garvagh Madonna, John the Baptist is handing Christ a pink carnation. Pink or red often symbolizes love and affection showing that John truly loved his cousin. Raphael used geometric shapes in his painting where Daddi used lines to show depth. However, Raphael also used many vertical lines in his architecture. Both painters used wood but Raphael worked with oil and Daddi used egg tempura. In Daddi’s piece and many other medieval works, gold leafing is very common. Both pieces of art had some sort of gold piecing above the heads. Daddi’s was more ornate and big while Raphael’s was just a simple halo. Raphael used a much less ornate design over all. Daddi’s painting had ornate shapes and designs covering the whole piece.