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Jan de Bisschop

Mother and Child

Maker

Jan de Bisschop (Dutch, 1628-1671)

Title

Mother and Child

Year

after 1655

Medium

  • Bister ink and wash technique on paper,
  • incised for transfer

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

  • Bister ink and wash technique on paper,
  • incised for transfer

Materials

wash technique, ink

Supports

  • paper

Dimensions

36.8 x 27.3 cm (14 1/2 x 10 3/4 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Maida and George Abrams in memory of Professor J.Q. van Regteren Altena

Object Number

81.099

Type

  • Drawings and Watercolors

Exhibition History

Under the Magnifying Glass
Dutch and Flemish Drawings from the Museum's Collection
Sep 22, 2000 – Jan 14, 2001

Label copy

This drawing is an excellent example of Jan de Bisschop's work in his typical medium of bister ink, a dark brown medium that fades over time to a rich orange tone. In terms of style, the classically posed figures reflect the artist's fascination with Italian models. His interests prompted him to travel to Italy around 1655 to study and sketch Greek and Roman sculpture as well as Italian paintings and monuments. Many of his works are direct copies from Italian models, while others are reminiscent of classical art, but do not resemble any particular object or school, as is the case with this RISD drawing. It is only the woman's halo and the fruit in the child's hand that identify the subjects as the Madonna and Child. Close examination reveals that the contours of Madonna and Child were incised with a burin, an engraver's tool, indicating that de Bisschop presumably intended to copy the outline of his drawing in order to produce a print of it. Many of his sketches were reproduced as prints and bound in volumes that were meant to serve as teaching models for young artists. To date, no print of this drawing has been discovered.

Image use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use.

Public Domain This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Jan de Bisschop (Dutch, 1628-1671)
Mother and Child, after 1655
Bister ink and wash technique on paper, incised for transfer
36.8 x 27.3 cm (14 1/2 x 10 3/4 inches)
Gift of Maida and George Abrams in memory of Professor J.Q. van Regteren Altena 81.099

To request new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

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We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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