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299:(begun 1519), continuing the architecture of the architectural frame and therefore that of the original church setting for which it was painted. This was a radical rethink of the type, apparently set outside some temple portico with large soaring columns, viewed obliquely. The Virgin and Child are no longer at the centre of the composition, but to the right of the picture space.
137:
rapt stillness of mood, in which the Saints, scarcely looking at one another, seem to communicate at a spiritual rather than a material level". At least that is the case in earlier examples; later ones, from the 16th century onwards, often give the impression of more conventional conversations between the figures, who lean towards one another and interact more.
186:
had all the principal figures on a single level, or nearly so. They therefore tended to move towards a horizontal format, as there was little but angels and architecture to put at the top of a vertical one, unless the divine figures were raised on a very high throne, as in the unusual composition of
136:
The term is often used as a title for paintings to avoid listing all the individual figures, although the trend in museums and academic art history is now to give the full list. The name, which only appears as a title retrospectively in the 18th century, has been explained with reference to "their
209:). Often such works, especially if in a horizontal format and at half-length or with seated figures, were painted for the homes of wealthy faithful (and often collectors), whether for a private chapel or to be hung in other rooms, treated not unlike portraits or secular scenes.
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concerned. The mixture of figures from different periods that is normal in the type makes it clear that no historical incident is being depicted, and whatever the setting, the space should be understood as mystical rather than any actual place.
386:. It was a northern speciality, when several of the figures beside the Virgin were sitting, on a bench or bank or on the ground, usually in a garden setting within an enclosure of some sort – originally a metaphor for the Virgin's womb, as the
762:
604:" that Palma Vecchio was "the inventor of the large Sacra Conversazione in which full-lengths of saints hold court in the presence of the Virgin ....", suggesting a rather more narrow sense of the term than prevails today.
246:). Having the Virgin the same size as the other figures is often regarded as essential to the type, so disqualifying most earlier works, where the Virgin is shown much larger. Among other artists to depict such a scene are
785:
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353:, with the figures mostly seated or kneeling in a rather tight group, combining informality and a monumental classicism. Such compositions also drew on traditional outdoor groups featuring the
205:
was one of the types of image that led to the horizontal format becoming common in panel paintings; before the
Renaissance it was rare in altar pieces (while the format was certainly common in
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The term does not appear, referring to the subject of a picture, before
Italian references at the end of the 18th century; in 1979 the earliest use found was in inventories of the
285:
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above the saints on the ground. There is typically a landscape background. As well as filling a vertical picture space, this had other advantages, allowing references to the
401:
These more relaxed groups were continued in
Venetian paintings set in open landscape. By the end of the 16th century, "the dominant relationships in an altarpiece such as
197:(c. 1503). Here as in many works, the Virgin and Child are seated on a throne, but the saints stand, so in more typical examples with the throne only slightly raised on a
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compositional type begins before 1500, and becomes increasingly popular during the century following, becoming by its end "the most common type of altarpiece in Italy".
585:). The earliest English meaning, from 1340, is defined by the OED as "The action of living or having one's being in a place or among persons", very close to the Latin.
283:
The early examples such as the
Bellini illustrated rarely show actual "conversation" or much interaction, though this may be seen from the 16th century on, as in the
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of 1512 are leading examples; in the latter the two saints are also kneeling on clouds, although the curtains to the sides and the ledge on which the famous angel-
302:
As in earlier altarpieces, the choice of saints is largely dictated by the patron saints of the donor and their family, and those of the church, city, diocese or
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588:
As the description of a painting, the term remained little used until the mid-19th century, when it was apparently popularized, at least in
English, by the
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is also rather complex; as in
English, it was a long time before the word came to mean merely people talking together (the 7th meaning listed in the
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hinting at it may have been preferred by some patrons to a full depiction, which rather required the choice of saints to be restricted to the
109:
may also be included, generally kneeling, often their patron saint is presenting them to the Virgin, and angels are frequently in attendance.
549:
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and
Catholic liturgy. But in these its meaning is more like "pious conduct" or "holy community". The development of meaning of the Italian
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had been developing the mostly northern tradition of outside settings in a garden or, especially later, an open landscape. The height of
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was among those complaining about its use. Nigel Gauk-Roger says that the "first true sacra conversazione was almost certainly" the
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painting the Virgin is removed from the earth whenever the context allows", and the scenes are often set among the heavenly clouds.
629:). All of these have standing saints in an architectural setting. Rona Goffen traces the origin of the type further back, to the
621:
420:
Examples in sculpture are relatively rare, if only because of the number of figures involved. One exception was planned by
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In
Italian the term is perhaps used more often and more widely than is usually the case in English, for example covering
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293:. In the first examples the setting is normally architectural, loosely representing heaven, but also, until Titian's
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in a relatively informal grouping, as opposed to the more rigid and hierarchical compositions of earlier periods.
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Goffen, Rona. "Nostra
Conversatio in Caelis Est: Observations on the Sacra Conversazione in the Trecento",
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Most accounts of the development restrict themselves to Italy, ignoring northern parallels, despite the
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Another type of composition developed to suit the needs of vertical format altarpieces with a
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was "probably the first major
Italian artist to employ it repeatedly", painting over twenty.
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of about 1503 had allowed a landscape to show above the lower zone with the saints.
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space. While traditional altarpieces generally retained a vertical format, the
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Goffen, 198 and note 4, who refers to the revised "North Italy" volume of 1871
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Later art historians have commonly placed the origin of the type in works by
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1269:, Vol. I, 1971 (English trans from German), Lund Humphries, London,
1183:"Grove": Nigel Gauk-Roger. "Sacra conversazione." Grove Art Online.
85:), meaning "holy (or sacred) conversation", is a genre developed in
1006:. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Weborn 26 Feb. 2017.
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where the Virgin and Child hover in the air well above the saints.
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and Madonna and Child compositions with angels and other figures.
56:(frame removed), sometimes considered the "first" instance of the
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The Art of Italy in the Royal Collection; Renaissance and Baroque
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clearly representing the same type, from as early as 1434–36, as
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developed as artists replaced earlier hieratic and compartmented
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Hope, Charles, "Titian's Life and Times", in Jaffé, David (ed),
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lean keep the setting tied to the earth. From the 1520s onwards
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with compositions in which figures interacted within a unified
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Hall, 331, giving a long list of saints on the next two pages.
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Boase, T.S.R. (1979). "Giorgio Vasari. The Man and the Book".
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Virgin and Child with Saints Catherine and John the Evangelist
286:
Madonna and Child with Saints Luke and Catherine of Alexandria
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102:
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were done; these were made by others following his designs.
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from 1763 and 1797. But the term, in its Latin equivalents
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by Domenico Veneziano from around 1445–47 (main panel now
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Van Eyck and the Founders of Early Netherlandish Painting
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829:– a Victorian gathering focused on the arts or sciences
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Virgin and Child with Saint Bernardino and Other Saints
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The Virgin placed in an enclosed garden is known as
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depicted by a member of the Cologne school, c. 1520
201:, the adult heads are at about the same level. The
120:, 1505, who also developed types for wealthy homes.
1287:, 1970, London: Thames and Hudson (World of Art),
1211:, The National Gallery Company/Yale, London 2003,
1236:The Sixteenth Century Italian Paintings, Volume I
1301:
1195:Hall's Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art
130:Madonna and Child with Saints Dorothy and George
1187:. Oxford University Press. Weborn 4 Mar. 2017.
550:The Virgin and Child with Canon van der Paele
65:
1234:, National Gallery Catalogues (new series):
848:in Encyclopædia Britannica; but not by Grove
793:Triptych of the Virgin and Child with Saints
633:, examining several examples, many from the
1238:, 2004, National Gallery Publications Ltd,
1177:, vol. 61, no. 2, 1979, pp. 198–222.,
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349:became a specialist in strongly horizontal
1002:RC, 214; Grove; Rylands, Philip, "Palma."
773:The Virgin and Child with Saints and Donor
1143:, p. 82, 1999, Harvey Miller Publishers,
643:Virgin and Child with Canon van der Paele
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398:, marking Mary's conception of Christ.
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262:. Some scholars have suggested that the
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1285:Venetian painting: A concise history
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331:Also in the 1510s, Titian and other
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622:Santa Lucia de' Magnoli Altarpiece
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363:Adoration of the Shepherds
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101:) amidst a group of
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1185:Oxford Art Online
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63:
57:
47:Fra Angelico
40:
36:
29:
1281:Steer, John
1217:1 857099036
857:Rylands; NG
488:Reformation
355:Holy Family
268:painted by
176:altarpieces
158:Development
95:Virgin Mary
1304:Categories
1293:0500201013
1275:0853312702
1244:1857099087
1203:0719541476
1168:References
1149:1872501281
652:Otto Pächt
81:; plural:
64:In art, a
1054:Hall, 325
1045:Hall, 327
965:(20): 90.
929:Hall, 297
727:Titian's
694:, 1512–13
673:, c. 1503
671:Giorgione
553:, 1434–36
540:Etymology
476:(in aria)
337:Giorgione
333:Venetians
327:, c. 1519
195:Giorgione
172:polyptych
132:, 1515–18
97:with the
984:Hope, 16
816:See also
631:Trecento
609:Masaccio
496:Apostles
490:, and a
430:Florence
424:for the
232:and the
168:triptych
128:Titian,
74:Italian:
42:predella
938:RC, 214
692:Raphael
571:Vulgate
514:Raphael
508:in aria
482:or the
464:in aria
443:In aria
415:Baroque
409:(1593,
242:(1437,
146:Raphael
142:in aria
1291:
1273:
1256:
1242:
1221:"NG":
1215:
1209:Titian
1201:
1147:
810:, 1627
808:Rubens
715:, 1517
627:Uffizi
506:. The
361:, the
291:Titian
270:Duccio
265:Maestà
258:, and
244:Louvre
207:murals
103:saints
60:format
1121:Grove
1036:Grove
1018:Grove
947:Grove
902:Grove
875:Grove
834:Notes
779:type.
594:Crowe
530:putti
93:(the
39:with
1289:ISBN
1271:ISBN
1254:ISBN
1240:ISBN
1213:ISBN
1199:ISBN
1145:ISBN
602:élan
596:and
565:and
199:dais
187:the
162:The
963:XXV
583:OED
516:'s
428:in
405:’s
339:'s
289:by
238:by
228:by
193:by
170:or
148:'s
45:by
1306::
1283:,
1265:,
975:NG
961:.
893:NG
771:,
748:,
709:,
690:,
669:,
611:,
456:,
323:,
280:.
254:,
250:,
51:c.
49:,
1277:,
72:(
20:)
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