The Apparition of the Virgin

Provenance

Commissioned c. 1530/1540 by Giulia Muzzarelli, Ferrara. possibly Cardinale Luigi d'Este, Tivoli, by 1573 until at least 1580.[1] Borghese collection, Rome, as by Scarsellino.[2] Littlehales, London; (Littlehales sale, Christie's, London, 2 March 1804, no. 67, as by Palma Giovane, bought in). Robert Fagan and Charles Grignion, Rome; (Fagan and Grignion sale, Squibb, London, 29 May 1806, no. 50, as by Carracci, sale postponed from 26 May 1806). Charles John Howard, 17th earl of Suffolk [1804-1876], Charlton Park, Wiltshire, by 1854. (Count Alessandro Contini Bonacossi, Florence and Rome); sold 1937 to the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, New York;[3] gift 1939 to NGA. [1] The painting was possibly removed by Cardinale Luigi d'Este by 1573, or removed and taken to Rome when Ferrara passed to Papacy in 1598, or it may have reverted to the possession of the Muzzarelli family; see Girolamo Baruffaldi, _Vite de' pittori e scultori ferrarese scritte dall'arciprete Girolamo Baruffaldi, con annotazioni_, 2 vols., Ferrara, 1844: 1:385, and Alberto Serafini, _Girolamo da Carpi, pittore e architetto ferrarese (1501-1556)_, Rome, 1915: 136. [2] The painting was possibly given to Scipione Borghese by Battista Muzzarelli c. 1608, and was first recorded in the Borghese collection in a 1693 inventory; see the letter of 6 September 1988 from Burton B. Fredericksen, The Getty Provenance Index, in NGA curatorial files. [3] According to Fern Rusk Shapley, _Catalogue of the Italian Paintings_, 2 vols., Washington, 1979: 1:226. See also The Kress Collection Digital Archive, https://kress.nga.gov/Detail/objects/2070.

The Apparition of the Virgin

Girolamo da Carpi

1530/1540

Accession Number

1939.1.382

Medium

oil on panel

Dimensions

overall: 199.4 x 131.1 cm (78 1/2 x 51 5/8 in.) | framed: 225.1 x 158.8 x 11.8 cm (88 5/8 x 62 1/2 x 4 5/8 in.)

Classification

Painting

Museum

National Gallery of Art

Washington, D.C., United States

Credit Line

Samuel H. Kress Collection

Tags

Painting Renaissance (1400–1599) Oil Painting Panel Painting Italian

Background & Context

Background Story

Girolamo da Carpi (1501-1556) was a Ferrarese painter known for his elegant mannerist style that combines the influence of Correggio's soft modeling with the decorative elegance of the Ferrarese court. The Apparition of the Virgin from 1530-40 depicts a vision of the Virgin Mary in the elegant, mannerist style that distinguishes Ferrarese painting of the mid-16th century. The apparition subject—the Virgin appearing to a kneeling figure—allows Girolamo da Carpi to exercise his talent for combining the visionary and the decorative in a composition that is simultaneously devotional and elegant.

Cultural Impact

Girolamo da Carpi's Apparition of the Virgin is important in the history of Ferrarese painting because it demonstrates the elegant mannerist style that distinguishes the Ferrarese school from the more naturalistic traditions of Florence and Venice. The combination of visionary subject and decorative elegance creates a type of religious painting that is simultaneously devotional and decorative—a combination that defines the Ferrarese mannerist style.

Why It Matters

The Apparition of the Virgin is Girolamo da Carpi's Ferrarese elegance and devotion combined: a vision of the Virgin rendered in the mannerist style that distinguishes Ferrarese painting from the more naturalistic traditions of Florence and Venice. The 1530-40 painting is simultaneously devotional and decorative—a hallmark of the Ferrarese school.