Virgin Child

The Menil Collection: Virgin & Child
A. Identification Having never visited the Menil Collection before, I was awed by the size and beauty of this private collection. Founded by John de Menil and Dominique de Menil, the Menil Collection houses all of the pieces that are the focus of this paper. The piece of art I chose to write about from the Menil Collection is the Virgin & Child. Originating from Northern France in the early to mid-fourteenth century, the Virgin & Child is completely sculpted in wood. The two people represented in this piece are the Virgin Mary holding her child, Jesus of Nazareth. I know that this piece must be of gothic origin from the late Byzantine era simply due to the fact that it is so far into Common Era.
We began this course by studying cave paintings and sculptures that were tens of thousands of years old and it is a very insightful experience to be able to observe the transition of art through such a vast amount of time. Furthermore, the Virgin & Child also represents the differences in beliefs between different cultural and time periods. Other societies of the past worshipped deities that may not actually be human-like entities, such as the sun, or even human and natural ideals such as fertility. It really shows how fascinating it is that the different faiths have evolved over time.

B. Description & Formal Analysis Shortly after walking into the Menil Collection, I was shown where all of the pieces that we were to consider were located. The Virgin & Child was one of the last ones I was shown, but I was immediately drawn to it. At almost six-hundred years old, there was a feeling of beauty and majesty that has faded, but can still be felt residually, sort of like looking at the remains of the Coliseum in Rome.
As I said before, this piece is completely sculpted in wood. The Virgin, approximately three feet tall, was holding the Baby, which was approximately eight inches tall without its head. The Virgin & Child stood on a pedestal that was roughly three feet tall, making the entire structure to be six feet tall and eight to ten inches wide. From top to bottom, there doesn’t seem to be any painting or coloring on the piece. It is all a natural wooden color, and the pedestal is more or less the same. Behind the Virgin & Baby and the pedestal the piece is on top of, there is a rug hanging on the wall. The color of the rug is on the side of maroon or dark purple and the design is typical of a rug that one would see in a home. I am not sure what the purpose of the rug is, as I don’t believe it is part of the Virgin & Baby. It is possibly there to enhance the grandeur of the piece.
The piece was crafted with many details, all the way from the top of the Virgin’s head to her feet. She wears a long flowing robe with a hood over her long, wavy hair. Her long, flowing robe drapes over her body in such a way that there are many cascading folds of fabrics all around her body. Through the draping of fabric, I could see that the Virgin’s belly seems enlarged, as if she were pregnant. However, I doubt that this was the case and was maybe meant as a sign of health. At the bottom of the piece, there is a small opening where we can see that she is wearing sandals and it is at this small area that I feel that there is the most detail. The reason I say this is that between all of the draping of the robe, there is a lot of fabric and creases and it opens up to show a small portion of her feet wearing sandals. It’s amazing to see that despite the entire structure being solid and made of wood, you can still see and feel how natural the piece is, almost as if it could come to life at any moment. I can only imagine how much more splendid it would be to gaze upon this rendition of the Virgin & Child six-hundred years earlier, when it would have been fresh and without damage. The portrayal of Jesus as a baby in the Virgin Mary’s arm in this piece seems to be somewhat strange, for the lack of a better word. The Baby is in a half kneeling position (one leg resting on the shins while the other is out forward). He has one arm to his side, and his other hand is formed into a religious hand sign. This hand sign is characterized by the Baby’s index and middle finger pointing up while the other three fingers are held against the palm. He is topless with his robe draping from his waist downwards. The interaction between the Baby and the Virgin, aside from one being in the other’s arm, is that the Virgin is looking in the Baby’s direction. Although she isn’t looking directly at him, I believe there is a strong connection between the two that is more than the eyes can see. Whether that is a maternal connection, or one of spiritual or faith, there definitely exists a very strong bond. As I mentioned earlier, some of the beauty and majesty of the piece has faded. The reason I say this is that there is a fair amount of damage to the wooden structure. From the middle of the Virgin’s neck down to the bottom of her belly, there is a fairly large and noticeable crack in the wood. Her right forearm and hand is missing, with only a stub where they are supposed to be. Towards the bottom center of her robe there is extensive cracking and chipping of the wood. Baby Jesus, on the other hand, is missing his head and left forearm and hand. Despite the damage to the Virgin & Baby, the overall feel of the piece does not seem to vanish. Even at first glance, when I did not know what I was looking at, I had a sense that the artistic piece represented something more than just a woman holding her child. I felt the bond that the piece portrayed even as I approached the piece, whether that is a maternal or spiritual bond.
C. Original Context The Virgin & Baby is a representation of the Virgin Mary holding
Jesus as a baby in her arms. Jesus of Nazareth is a central figure in Christianity. Considered to be the Son of God, “Christians hold Jesus to be the awaited Messiah of the Old Testament and refer to him as Jesus Christ or simply as Christ.” (Jesus) With this background in mind, it is obvious that the importance of Jesus lies in the Christian faith and its branches such as Catholicism. The Virgin Mary is thus the vessel for which the Son of God was born and is therefore also regarded highly in the Christian faith. Since this particular representation of the Virgin & Baby originated from the Byzantine Era, it is very probable that the religious piece was “central to Byzantine spirituality as one of its most important religious figures.” (Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters) Because the purpose and symbolism of the Virgin & Baby was heavily religious, it is likely that the piece was publicly available at a church so that everyone would be able pray upon it.
D. Current Context Although I was not around six hundred years ago to witness this particular Virgin & Baby in its original representation, I am able to discern certain aspects of it from where it stands in the Menil Collection today. As I mentioned before, I was drawn to this piece from the moment I laid eyes on it. The powerful presence of the Virgin & Baby was somewhat accentuated by the Menil Collection, although I believe they could have done a better job. In the room where the Virgin & Baby was, the piece was placed towards the back-center of the wall. It certainly was the main piece of the room. However, there were other pieces in the room that took away from the Virgin & Baby. They were in too close of proximity and were more or less a distraction. Despite the Virgin & Baby being an important piece of Christian art, there didn’t seem to be other Christian artwork that complimented it. This is one of the reasons why I did not realize what I was looking at when I first beheld the Virgin & Baby. I believe that it would be a completely different experience to view the Virgin & Baby in its original context. Furthermore, the damage to the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus also hindered me in recognizing the artistic piece. Assuming that it was originally placed in a church, I believe that there would have been more an emotional and spiritual connection with this piece due to the ambiance and sentiment of a church.
E. Parallels As an important piece to the Christian faith, I tried to find something that also represented the religious spirit of the Virgin & Child. With this in mind, I chose the Ascension of Christ and Mission of the Apostles. The central figure in this piece is Jesus Christ, who is also featured in the Virgin & Child. Both pieces of art originates in France and both pieces seem to retain their natural colors without being painted over. Although the Ascension of Christ and Mission of the Apostles is dated several hundred years before the Virgin & Child, they both represent the faith of the Christian religion. A major difference between the two is that Jesus is a child with his mother, Mary, in the Virgin & Child, and a grown man with his Apostles in the other piece.
F. Personal Response As I mentioned before, I found this piece to be powerful, which is why I chose to write about it. I was intrigued by the fact that it had a good amount of damage on it and yet still managed to give a sense of majesty. Furthermore, the Christian faith is one that has influence in every corner of the world, especially in the United States, and this gave me a chance to learn of some of its history. The reason I say it’s powerful and that it stood out to me is because many of the works in the room in which the Virgin & Baby stood was of much older origins. Because of this, there was a major difference in detail and artistic skill and the Virgin & Baby stood out to me not only because it had the most detail and seemed the most elegant, but also because it represented a power religion.
G. Conclusion Not only was I drawn to the Virgin & Baby because of its beauty and artistic elegance, but it gave an aura that made me feel that it represented something more. I was right when I realized that this piece art represented the Virgin Mary and Jesus, two very important figures in the Christian faith. Not only did writing about the Virgin & Baby give me insight into the art history of this particular piece, but it also let me delve into its significance as a religious symbol and why it is so important in the Christian faith.

Citation
"Jesus." <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus>.
Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters. "The Cult of the Virgin Mary in the Middle Ages". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/virg/hd_virg.htm (October 2001)
Stokstad, Marilyn, and Michael Cothren. Art History. 4th Ed. Pearson, Print.