Virgin of the Rocks
The Virgin of the Rocks is one of the main painting by Leonardo da Vinci. It shows the Virgin Mary holding the Christ child, the locust boys and an angel in a rock cave, painted with oil on wood. From the painting, there are two versions. The first was built around 1483-1486 (dimensions: 199 × 122 cm), the second at 1493-1495 (dimensions: 180 × 120 cm).
Origin and history
The images are works commissioned an altarpiece of the " Brotherhood of the Immaculate Conception" for the Milanese Franciscan church of San Francesco Grande. The contract for a three-winged altarpiece with a depiction Marie went in equal parts to Leonardo and the brothers Ambrogio and Evangelista de Predis, all of which were artistically active in Milan at the court of Ludovico Sforza.
Virgin of the Rocks, 1st version
Leonardo painted three years (1483-1486) at the image and put the people, for those times terribly uncommon in the foreground of a dark grotto represents the brothers de Predis painted two angels playing musical instruments for the respective wing. The entire altarpiece is now in the Louvre in Paris.
The nature-loving Leonardo, who combined almost all of his portraits with landscapes plays in this picture impressively with light and shadow effects. One more sinister, cold and dark cave he opposes the bright loveliness of the Marie group. The very girlish -looking Mary is the center of the image. Her gaze descends to the praying locust boy down, she includes with the right hand while holding the left hand protectively over the boy Jesus, who is supported by an angel. The figures shown for the typical Italian early Renaissance have by gestures or eyes contact with each other, but partly also with the viewer, which is thus included in the graceful scene.
The client had obviously wanted the unusual combination of Jesus and locust boys boys, because as a Franciscan venerated in a special way (next to Francis and Christ ) and John the Baptist. The painting was never passed because the boys and Mary without gold and halos are shown, which did not correspond to the late medieval pictorial tradition. Obviously there were disputes regarding payment, at least got the image in the first version on Ludovicio Sforza to the French court and is now exhibited in the Louvre.
Virgin of the Rocks, 2nd version
The second, slightly modified version - accepted by the brotherhood - was 1493-1508 painted by Leonardo started and continued by his pupil Ambrogio de Predis. Overall, the picture is kept bright, and there is now haloes and a locust rod. The image is now in the National Gallery (London ).