Art Both Duccio di Buoninsegna and Fra Filippo Lippi paint the Christian Madonna and child scene. Lippi's "Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels" is rendered on wood with tempera and gold leaf. It is rounded at the top, and was the center part of a triptych that was completed in about the year 1440.[footnoteRef:1] Also in tempera and gold leaf on wood is di Buoninsegna's "Madonna and Child." Candle damage at the bottom of the wood panel suggests that the painting was "used for private devotion."[footnoteRef:2] Buoninsegna's painting was completed in the year 1300, almost one hundred and fifty years prior to Lippi's "Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels." The two depictions of mother Mary and baby Jesus share similar themes, and in both the mother is holding the child. However, the composition of the two paintings is strikingly different and symbolizes their respective religious histories. [1: "Fra Filippo Lippi: Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels (49.7.9)." In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000 -- . http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/49.7.9 (August 2007)] [2: "Duccio di Buoninsegna: Madonna and Child (2004.442)." In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000 -- . http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2004.442 (September 2010)]

The earlier piece, di Buoninsegna's "Madonna and Child" shares much in common with Byzantine religious icons. Byzantine art "provided severe, stylized models" and was the prevailing religious artistic style in Europe during the time that di Buoninsegna painted.[footnoteRef:3] As a result, the di Buoninsegna depiction of the Virgin and child is stiff and rigid like much Byzantine iconography. Moreover, Byzantine art is characterized by the use of gold, which shows off the simplicity of the main composition. In this case, di Buoninsegna features the Virgin Mary in the center of the composition. She is holding baby Jesus in her arms. The lack of naturalism and perspective is also characteristic of Byzantine art, which predated the Renaissance art in Italy. By the time Fra Filippo Lippi painted the triptych with "Madonna...

[3: Paoletti, John T. And Radke, Gary M. Art in Renaissance Italy. Laurence King Publishing, 2005, p. 53]
Lippi's "Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels" is a composition that is classically Renaissance. In fact, Lippi's art workshop was "one of the most active and notable in Florence during the 1440s and 1450s."[footnoteRef:4] The gold is the only formal connection with the di Buoninsegna composition. Otherwise, gone are the Byzantine stiff forms and the simple composition on the canvas. Whereas di Buoninsegna had a lot of empty space on the canvas, Lippi has none in the "Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels." Renaissance art had become much more elaborate, reflecting the increased wealth and power of the Roman Catholic Church. [4: Paoletti, John T. And Radke, Gary M. Art in Renaissance Italy. Laurence King Publishing, 2005, p. 233]

The subject matter of the two paintings might be the same, but the way the artist depicts the relationship between Madonna and child is completely different. In di Buoninsegna's "Madonna and Child," the baby Jesus reaches out to touch his mother's face like an ordinary child would do. This gesture humanizes Jesus in a way that almost makes the viewer forget that he is the Son of God. Likewise, Mary looks down with love and affection at the bundle in her arms. The scene is one that is tender, and focuses on maternal love and devotion. Showing "maternal sweetness" is common in Renaissance art, especially the "Christian or virginal representation."[footnoteRef:5] On the contrary, the Madonna in Fra Filippo Lippi's "Madonna and Child Enthroned with Two Angels" is not even looking at her child. She has a distant look on her face, as she gazes off into the distance. However, the baby Jesus looks right at the viewer. Baby Jesus is too infantile to look directly at the viewer in the di Buoninsegna's "Madonna and Child." The relationship between mother and child is affectionate in de Buoninsegna's painting, but it is colder in Lippi's. [5: Tinagli, Paola. Women in Italian Renaissance Art: Gender,…