Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo

Anonymous sale, New York, Christie's, 27 January 2000, lot 86;

Private collection, Argentina;

From whom acquired by the present owner.

Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo likely painted this serene Madonna in the 1770s. She is set before a crescent moon (a classical symbol of chastity) and crowned by a starry halo, symbols that refer to the immaculate conception. Often misunderstood, this Catholic doctrine refers not to the birth of Christ, but to the birth of the Madonna herself. In order to bring Christ into the world as a pure vessel, she herself was conceived "without concupiscence," or lust. The subject was particularly popular at the time and Giovanni Domenico rendered it many times, in both half-length and full-length formats.

The eldest son of Giambattista Tiepolo, Giovanni Domenico trained under and worked alongside his father. Following his death in 1770, Giovanni Domenico returned to Venice, where he became the city's preeminent painter of religious works.