The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 27, 2024
The Virgin and Child with the Pear
1511
(German, 1471–1528)
Catalogue raisonné: Meder 33b
Location: not on view
Description
Dürer portrays the Virgin and Child on an outing away from the city in this relatively casual moment in which they rest beside a tree. As the Christ child looks directly toward the viewer to bestow a blessing, his young mother tries to redirect his attention to the pear in her hand. Here, Dürer emphasizes the natural actions of a mother trying to distract her child. Although Mary knows his holy mission and tragic destiny, she still attempts to prolong her child’s joyful youth with innocent amusements. Dürer demonstrates his further technical and artistic development in this medium through the subtle overall tonality he achieved with light and shadow, particularly in the sky and Mary’s clothing.- Dürer’s Women: Images of Devotion and Desire. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 22-September 28, 2014).Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991).Albrecht Dürer - 500th Anniversary. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 19-March 28, 1971).The Print Club of Cleveland, 1919 - 1969: Fifty Years in Review. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (January 14-March 31, 1970).
- {{cite web|title=The Virgin and Child with the Pear|url=false|author=Albrecht Dürer|year=1511|access-date=27 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1959.7