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Mother and Child Image in Art
It seems inconceivable that, in a period when the most popular image was that of the Madonna and Child, there was little or no understanding of or affection for children in everyday life, yet such is the popular misconception about medieval childhood. One factor, which has contributed to this idea, is infant mortality during the middle Ages.
Of course, mortality rates may well have differed greatly among the different classes of society as well as among periods and geographical locations, which makes it hazardous to generalize; nevertheless, there is no doubt that medieval infant mortality was very high compared to that in modern western society. This has led to a general belief that medieval parents could not bring themselves to become emotionally attached to offspring so likely to die. In turn, it is argued that medieval adults failed to understand or to recognize the nature of childhood, and thus the medieval child was regarded, portrayed and treated as a miniature adult. That is why a mother and child painting or sculpture was rarely seen.
By the beginning of the fourteenth century, however, sculpture retreated from the graceful realism of the 'elegant style' and abstracted the human form into an attenuated tube. The S-curve and flowing draperies persisted but the body became curiously devoid of volume. This edited realism was balanced by an endearing attention to the detail of life. One of the best examples is in the early fourteenth century statue, "Virgin of Paris" (Web 3). Even though the bodies of Mary and Christ are extended and ethereal, the Infant Christ remains a baby, playing with his mother's veil.
Artist Frederic Leighton was truly a man of his times in the work Mother and Child “Cherries” (Web 1). In this painting, we see an example of a cozy, charming Victorian interior scene....
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