Introduction to the Renaissance: Raphael's "Alba Madonna"

Today the students examined two paintings of the Virgin Mary and Jesus:

• Cimabue's Madonna and Child
• Raphael's Alba Madonna

We discussed similarities and differences between the two paintings.

Several perceptive students pointed out that both sets of figures have halos -- although the halos in Raphael's work are so soft and subtle that they often escape notice!

We used these two paintings as our introduction to the Renaissance. We started to discuss the way that art can reveal the changing outlooks and ideas of people during different periods of history.