Duccio di Buoninsegna, commonly known as just Duccio, was an Italian painter active in Siena, Tuscany, in the late 13th and early 14th century. He was hired throughout his life to complete many important works in government and religious buildings around Italy. Duccio is considered one of the greatest Italian painters of the Middle Ages, and is credited with creating the painting styles of Trecento Gothic style and the Sienese school.
128389 × 60 cmMuseo dell'Opera Metropolitana del Duomo
The Crevole Madonna is a tempera and gold on wood panel painting by the Tuscan painter Duccio di Buoninsegna, created c. 1283–1284. Originally located in the Pieve di Santa Cecilia in Crevole, it is now held in the Museo dell'Opera metropolitana del Duomo in Siena. It was one of the artist's first works.
Based on his investigation, Vittorio Lusini believes that the panel was probably made for the Church of Santi Pietro e Paolo of Montepescini and then moved to the Augustinian hermitage of Montespecchio. History →
The table depicts the Madonna with her head reclined in three quarters and a Child who stretches his right arm to tenderly touch his mother's veil. Two small angels appear in the upper corners of the table. Description and style →
Rucellai Madonna
1285450 × 290 cmUffizi Gallery
The Rucellai Madonna is a panel painting by the Sienese painter Duccio di Buoninsegna showing the Virgin and Child enthroned with Angels. The contract for the work is dated 1285. The painting was probably completed in 1286, and was commissioned by the Laudesi confraternity of Florence to decorate the chapel they maintained in the Dominican church of Santa Maria Novella.
The Rucellai Madonna is the earlier of the two works by Duccio for which there is written documentation (the other is the Maestà of 1308–11). History →
The Rucellai Madonna is currently displayed in the first gallery of the Galleria degli Uffizi, along with Cimabue's Santa Trinità Maestà (c. 1285) and Giotto's Ognissanti Madonna (1306). This choice follows Vasari's example by locating the originary moment (“i primi lumi”) of Italian Renaissance painting in the works of those artists. Legacy →
The work, measuring 4.5 by 2.9 meters, was painted in egg tempera on a five-pieced poplar panel. The panel and frame would have been constructed by a master carpenter and then handed over to Duccio for painting. Description →
Madonna with Child and six Angels
130097 × 63 cmNational Gallery of Umbria
Madonna with Child and Six Angels, or The Perugia Madonna, is a Madonna painting by Gothic artist Duccio di Buoninsegna.
Madonna and Child with Saints
1300128 × 234 cmPinacoteca Nazionale, Siena
The Nativity with the Prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel
130848 × 87 cmAndrew W. Mellon collection
The Calling of the Apostles Peter and Andrew
130844 × 46 cmSamuel H. Kress Collection
The Wedding at Cana
130844 × 46 cmMuseo dell'Opera Metropolitana del Duomo
Christ and the Samaritan Woman
131044 × 46 cmThyssen-Bornemisza Museum
Madonna and Child with Saints Polyptych
131180 × 60 cmPinacoteca Nazionale, Siena
The Madonna and Child with Saints Polyptych is a five-piece Madonna polyptych by Italian Renaissance artist Duccio di Buoninsegna, also referred to as Polyptych no. 47 by Duccio.
Madonna and Child
200024 × 16 cmMetropolitan Museum of Art
Madonna and Child is a depiction of the Virgin and Child painted by Duccio di Buoninsegna, one of the most influential artists of the late 13th and early 14th centuries. The work is celebrated for stylistic innovations that introduced realism into Italian depictions of this subject.
Compared to frescoes and to larger, grander altarpieces, the Madonna and Child—a compact work measuring 11×81⁄8 inches—is understood to be an tranquil devotional image. Intimations of this reading appear in the burnt edges at the bottom of the original engaged frame, likely caused by lit candles positioned directly underneath. Description and influences →
The emergent spirit of humanism enlivens this painting in several places—the luminous colors applied to the garments, the gentle folds of the fabric, the fine details showing on the underside of the Virgin's veil, and the childish reach of the hand of Christ to the Virgin's face, whose sorrowful gaze anticipates His grim future. Aesthetic influences →
As is common for duecento and trecento paintings, the ownership and location of the Madonna and Child before the mid 19th century is unknown. The earliest known owner of the painting was the Russian Count Gregori Stroganoff (1829–1910), who reported having found it, unattributed, in a dealer's shop. History of ownership →
