VAM galleries including this work:
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This tondo (round) sculpture depicting the Virgin Mary with baby Jesus was executed by an artist affiliated with the Della Robbia Studio. It is sculpted in medium relief and finished with the blue and white glazes commonly associated with the Della Robbia Studio. At the time, glazed terracotta was used most commonly for earthenware, but Andrea’s uncle, Luca Della Robbia, championed its use for sculpture. Glazed terracotta eventually became quite popular for altarpieces and other such works because it was cheaper, brighter, and easier to transport than marble.

About the Artist

Andrea Della Robbia (c. 1435-1525) was the nephew and student of Luca Della Robbia (c. 1400-1482), a master designer and sculptor best known for his perfection of enameled terracotta, or faience. Luca created his glazes from a mixture of tin, antimony, and other substances. Both Luca and Andrea are known for their religious panels and sculpture, but they also created secular art, including many portrait busts of men, women, and children.

After Luca’s death, Andrea took over the Florence studio and continued his uncle’s tradition of creating fine sculpted works, mainly pictorial reliefs. A carver in the stone and woodworkers’ guild, Andrea was an especially gifted sculptor, capturing the nuances of facial detail with unusual skill. The Della Robbia family studio was carried on into the 16th century by Andrea’s sons, Luca II (c. 1480-1550), Giovanni (c. 1469-1529), and Girolamo (c. 1488-1566).

Classroom Ideas

Discussion: Why do you think the artist chose to make the base of the sculpture round? Does it add or detract anything from the work? What do you think of Della Robbia’s trademark blue and white color combination? Does it imbue the sculpture with a certain mood?

Activity: Create your own tondo relief. Roll out a flat slab of clay and use a knife or a pie pan to cut it into a circle. Then build the composition of your choice onto the round base. When the clay has dried, paint it with your favorite two colors. If you’d like, you can achieve the Della Robbia look by painting your sculpture blue and white.

Links

You’ll find a list of museums with pieces by Andrea Della Robbia in their collections in the ArtCyclopedia.
[www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/robbia_andrea_della.html]

Visit the Web Gallery of Art for a biographical sketch and examples of Della Robbia’s work.
[gallery.euroweb.hu/bio/r/robbia/andrea/biograph.html]