Bicci di Lorenzo (Florence, 1373 - 1452, Florence)
Virgin and Child with Saints Matthew and Francis, 1430-1450
Gold and tempera on panel, 84.1 x 51.8 cm (33 1/8 x 20 3/8 in.)
A mid-15th century Florentine gold and tempera painting on panel. The Virgin Mary, seated in the center of the arch and holding a rigidly seated Christ Child in her arm, nurses him. The child is upright and Mary’s bared breast appears through a slit in her red-and-gold dress, and a stream of milk enters his mouth. The fair-skinned, golden-haired Christ Child is nude except for part of his genitalia and left leg which are covered by the gold brocade of the lining of Mary’s hooded dark robe.She looks out from the painting.
Below Mary stand Saint Matthew on the left and Saint Francis on the right. Saint Matthew, who has light skin, gray hair, and a cropped gray beard, is dressed in a blue and gold garment topped by a pink and gold wrap. He is looking downward at the open book and pen that he holds in his hands. Saint Francis is dressed in a gray hooded robe. He holds a narrow cross on a short pole in one hand and, with the other, pulls at his robe to show his stigmata. He looks downward with his eyes almost shut, his bald head fringed with short gray hair and a short gray beard. All four figures have wide, ornate halos, rising behind their heads. The upper two-thirds of the background is gilded, with fine cracks throughout. The sculpted Gothic arch immediately behind the figures is bordered by pillars and unadorned capitals at the side, topped with a scalloped outer arch which terminates at the tip in a sharp point. Near the outer edge a narrow strip of alternating black and gold dashes give emphasis to the outer form.
Early Italian Room
Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.