Sacred Conversation

1524 · Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica, Rome

religious

The complex and unusual iconography of the "Sewing Madonna" includes the maternal symbolism conveyed by the quail and the rose tree behind the Virgin. Cariani used the same symbols in his Saint Gottard altarpiece to allude to the divine motherhood of the Madonna and to her virginity. The iconography of the National Gallery picture also includes symbols of fertility such as the rabbit and the cedar tree behind St Elizabeth, references to human motherhood.

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About the Artist

Giovanni Cariani

1485 – 1547

Giovanni Busi, called Cariani, was a Bergamasque, but worked principally in Venice. He was perhaps a pupil of Giovanni Bellini and Palma Vecchio, but was also influenced by Giorgione, Titian and Lotto. In turn, some of his works foreshadow his fellow-Bergamasque, Caravaggio. Some frescoes have recently been discovered in the citadel, Bergamo. Other works are in the Royal Collection, Windsor, and in Bergamo and other museums.

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