Madonna and Child and the Infant John the Baptist (The Bridgewater Madonna)

after Raphael (Urbino 1483 – Rome 1520).. Oil painting on panel, Madonna and Child and the Infant John the Baptist after Raphael (Urbino 1483 – Rome 1520), 19th century. This Madonna and Child is loosely based on the Bridgewater Madonna, in the National Gallery, Scotland, of around 1507 by Raphael which was probably made as a devotional image for a private chamber as opposed to a church. It shows a particularly graceful combination of poses with an elegant twist, called a contrapposto, of the Christ Child. The exchange of glances further emphasises the tender relationship between the mother and child. The original, without the Infant John also originally had a landscape background but it was painted out, possibly by Raphael himself, who decided a dark setting was a better enhanced the subtle modelling of his figures in light and shadow. Nymans Estate, West Sussex (Accredited Museum)