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"Immaculate with Child".
Oil on copper.
It has a frame of the eighteenth century with restorations.
Measurements: 32,5 x 25 cm; 39,5 x 32,5 cm (frame).
This work follows the model of Carlo Maratta. The copper presents the Virgin among clouds, evoking the image of the woman of the Apocalypse (Revelation 12:1). She stands on the globe, with the crescent moon under her feet and trampling the serpent. In her lap she holds the Child Jesus, who wields a spear with a cross on the tip, which she thrusts into the head of the reptile, symbolizing victory over evil. The scene is enriched with choirs of angels among the clouds and, on the right, two angels pointing to the Virgin's feet, reinforcing the idea of Mary as the new Eve, triumphant over sin.
Although some characteristic attributes of this iconography have been omitted, the artist retains the symbol of the crescent moon as an emblem of Mary's dominion over original sin. The orientation of the moon, with its downward curvature, follows Pacheco's interpretation, while the presence of the Child reaffirms the apocalyptic vision of the Virgin as Mother of God, whose divine role never ceased to exist.
Carlo Maratta, also known as Carlo Moratti, was born in Camerano, then part of the Papal States of Rome, a city to which he traveled in 1636, apparently with the secretary of Taddeo Barberini, and became an apprentice in the workshop of Andrea Sacchi. At this time his style was close to Sacchi's classicism, more measured and harmonious than Cortona's baroque style and influenced by Carracci, Guercino, Guido Reni, etc. He carried out numerous commissions for Pope Alexander VII (reign 1655-1667) and, from around 1660, his "portfolio of clients" spread throughout Europe and belonging to the upper class, which led to the establishment of the main workshop in Rome after the death of Bernini in 1680, from which time he became the most important artist in the city.
In 1664 he became director of the Accademia di San Luca in Rome, further promoting the study of classical antiquity. He produced works that are preserved in the Palazzo Altieri, in the Pitti Palace in Florence, in Santa Maria in Vallicella, in the Cybo Chapel of Santa Maria del Popolo, etc. It should also be noted that, in addition to his frequent religious themes, he was highly appreciated as a portraitist, and also for his works on mythological subjects. From the beginning of the 18th century, due to the economic situation, he would dedicate himself above all to the "pictorial restoration" of works by Raffaello Sanzio, Carracci, etc.
Works by the master are kept in important private collections all over the world, as well as in institutions such as the Prado Museum in Madrid, the National Gallery in London, the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid, the Getty Museum, the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Belgium, etc.