Madonna of the Milk
Ginori Factory
The relief represents the Virgin depicted in the intimate gesture of a mother nursing her child with her own milk. The subject represented and the size of the piece suggest a use for private devotion.
The type of clay links the execution of this piece to around the mid-18th century, while the refined modelling suggests a skilled workshop, probably identifiable with the chief modeller Gaspero Bruschi. However, comparison with the wax cast of a similar subject in the Museo Ginori (inv. 209), reveals the presence of variations, the most evident of which is the omission of the angels’ heads. This leads to the hypothesis that the model arrived at Doccia from an as yet unidentified bronze sculptor’s workshop and was partially modified during its adaptation into porcelain. It is known that Marquis Carlo Ginori purchased, for "factory use," plaster and terracotta sculptures, as well as plaster mould sections, directly from the workshops of late Baroque Florentine sculptors or derived from them in terms of design.
The model of our piece shows a wax coloration that, with few exceptions, characterizes the entire group of wax casts of the Museo Ginori. Therefore, we can consider that this too was made by sculptors active at the manufactory, such as Vincenzo Foggini, Giovan Battista Vannetti, and Anton Filippo Maria Weber.
Despite the shrinkage of the porcelain, the enlarged dimensions in the relief compared to the source model are justified by the expansion of the unmodelled surface.
The design of the rocks, which defines the shapeless mass upon which the Virgin sits in the wax version, should be considered an invention of the modeller, consistent with other compositions executed at Doccia.
- 01
The relief represents the Virgin depicted in the intimate gesture of a mother nursing her child with her own milk. The subject represented and the size of the piece suggest a use for private devotion.
The type of clay links the execution of this piece to around the mid-18th century, while the refined modelling suggests a skilled workshop, probably identifiable with the chief modeller Gaspero Bruschi. However, comparison with the wax cast of a similar subject in the Museo Ginori (inv. 209), reveals the presence of variations, the most evident of which is the omission of the angels’ heads. This leads to the hypothesis that the model arrived at Doccia from an as yet unidentified bronze sculptor’s workshop and was partially modified during its adaptation into porcelain. It is known that Marquis Carlo Ginori purchased, for "factory use," plaster and terracotta sculptures, as well as plaster mould sections, directly from the workshops of late Baroque Florentine sculptors or derived from them in terms of design.
The model of our piece shows a wax coloration that, with few exceptions, characterizes the entire group of wax casts of the Museo Ginori. Therefore, we can consider that this too was made by sculptors active at the manufactory, such as Vincenzo Foggini, Giovan Battista Vannetti, and Anton Filippo Maria Weber.
Despite the shrinkage of the porcelain, the enlarged dimensions in the relief compared to the source model are justified by the expansion of the unmodelled surface.
The design of the rocks, which defines the shapeless mass upon which the Virgin sits in the wax version, should be considered an invention of the modeller, consistent with other compositions executed at Doccia.
Characteristics
Bibliography
Inedito
