Adoration in the Forest
Artist: Fra Filippo lippi
1459
Painting
In this unusual scene (that is also known as Mystical Nativity) Lippi confounds conventional depictions that place the Adoration in a stable surrounded by animals and the wise men. The setting is a deep pine forest with five figures. This is a tribute to the monastery of Camaldoli located outside Florence on a steep forested hillside, to which the Medici family had connections. The composition has two structural elements linking the figures. A standing ovoid links Mary, Jesus, John the Baptist, St. Romuald, and God the Father who is common to both compositional devices. The second structural element runs downward from God the Father in a straight line that bisects the oval, through the Holy Spirit to the new-born Christ.
This oil on panel is in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin, Germany.
Adoration of the Magi
Artist: Andrea Mantegna
1495-1505
Painting
This image has a relatively simple composition as compared to many of Mantegna's works, setting the busts of five figures around the baby Jesus, set against a completely dark background. To the left, Mary holds up the newborn Christ, a subject of adoration for the "magi" or wise men to the right. The magi hold gifts of incense and gold for the infant as they kneel before him. The painting offers a more intimate, close-up representation of its subject-matter than others by Mantegna, and an unusually vibrant color palette.
This work is tempera on linen and it is in the Getty Museum, Los Angeles, California
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