Buy Art Prints Nowfrom Amazon
* As an Amazon Associate, and partner with Google Adsense and Ezoic, I earn from qualifying purchases.
by Tom Gurney
Tom Gurney BSc (Hons) is an art history expert with over 20 years experience
Published on June 19, 2020 / Updated on October 14, 2023
Email: tomgurney1@gmail.com / Phone: +44 7429 011000
The Virgin, Jesus and Saint John the Baptist is a painting that was painted by William-Adolphe Bouguereau in the year 1875.
If you couldn't tell from the title of the painting, it is, of course, a religious painting that features prominent figures in the religions of Christianity and Catholicism.
The painting itself is an oil painting, and in traditional William-Adolphe Bouguereau style, the painting is Neoclassicism in style.
To talk about the art itself, as I mentioned above it features prominent people within not just Christianity but other religions as well such as Catholicism.
The image features the most important person in Catholicism which is the Virgin Mary who is sitting on a throne. It is also important to mention that many art historians have noticed that Mary is wearing a dark purple skirt.
This is important to the picture as the colour of purple connotes royalty. This means that in the painting the Virgin Mary is regal in nature as she sits upon her throne.
The throne is of course also regal in nature as the throne is where royalty would rest so by the Virgin Mary being seated on the throne it is associating her with royalty.
Now, it is time to talk about the children that are featured in the image. The most important person in all of Christianity is featured in this picture, and that, of course, is Jesus Christ as a baby.
It is important to know that by Jesus being a baby in this picture he is in turn associated with innocence. This is because infants and children are associated with purity and non-corruption, so this painting is saying that by Jesus being a baby he is guilt-free in the image.
The other child featured in the picture is St. John the Baptist. By John being a child he is also referred to as being virtuous in the image as I have said before children connote innocence.
He also connotes purity as well; this is because he is a Baptist. This shows John as pure as baptism itself is described as cleansing and purifying yourself of your old sins to have a new life with God.