Roman school, 17th century, Madonna with Child

Roman school, 17th century Madonna with Child Oil on copper, 15 x 11 cm With frame, 26 x 22 cm The small copper displayed here depicts the Madonna with Child against a dark background, delicately illuminated by a sacred light emanating from the two protagonists in the foreground. The choice of light, the half-length framing of the Virgin, the light tones slightly contrasted by a pleasant and non-intrusive chiaroscuro, and the pose of the two figures recall the seventeenth-century examples of similar subject matter from the Roman school. The classicism in the composition of the figures and in their poses is interwoven with the wisely measured use of light, reminiscent of Caravaggio's examples but rendered in a more softened and enveloping manner rather than a contrasting and impetuous one. The sweetness of the Child asleep in her lap, the delicate hold of the Virgin, whose gaze is directed upwards, are painted with masterful precision on the copper support, which gives greater fluidity to the brushstrokes and a clearer and more lucid intensity to the light colors of the drapery.