This is the first in a series of I’m thinking 3 parts over the course of 3 weeks(?) But it may be more.
Anyway, enjoy.
![Benvenuto di Giovanni | Madonna and Child | The Metropolitan Museum of Art Benvenuto di Giovanni | Madonna and Child | The Metropolitan Museum of Art](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffdecbcc1-a8ba-4478-b7d6-fa2de5527b6a_804x1200.jpeg)
The most enduring image of motherhood is that of the Madonna and child. Here in Europe, at least. The downcast, unseeing eyes and the languid frame of Mary supporting a child who is somehow both baby and wise man: its the poster child for Christian motherhood. But there appears to be another figure in these depictions, one that cannot be seen and, yet, is ever present. It’s there nevertheless: the male gaze.
The male gaze is Laura Mulvey’s 1975 cultural theory. In her book, ‘Visual Please and Narrative Cinema,’ she explains how the male creator manipulates the female subject to suit the desires of the male viewer.
But this seems very distant from the sacrality of Madonna and child depictions. There is nothing sexual in these religious depictions, so how can the male gaze infiltrate it?
We will focus our attention on how the male gaze infiltrates the motives behind these Madonna and Child paintings, looking at early depictions of motherhood.
Byzantine
The Virgin Mary was first introduced as a figure of worship in the Byzantine empire, as early as 432CE. Motherhood became something to aspire towards, a state that bought women closer to God and distanced them from the prior notion that motherhood was a burden, the only worthwhile result being that of another pair of hands to help get food. These emerging ideas of motherhood and of Mary were dispersed via art. Already there were strict rules imposed on these artistic portrayals, such as that the Madonna would never be show pregnant, so as to avoid the taboo topics of female sexuality in the sacred environment of the church.
The image portrayed was one of purity and, by living up to the standards set by the church and portrayed through these portraits, women could also become saints. A halo like Mary’s would crown their heads.
This religious function of motherhood in art excuses the use of intimacy between the two figures. Whilst this could be blamed on the lack of skills of the artist, but its more likely to portray how Mary was calm and collected throughout all the trails in her life. This is reflected in the expressionless face that artists tend to use for her, complete with the unfocused eyes that suggest she is looking at something beyond the frame, beyond the pause in time the painting is presenting: the future, her son on the cross. However this facial expression has some submissive leanings, with the downcast eyes avoiding eye contact with the viewer. This presents what the church wanted of its women.
Here the subject’s male gaze leanings can be seen emerging. It dictates the needs a patriarchal institution has for its female followers, using art to disseminate the message and encourage them to follow suit. The subject itself is viewed via a male gaze, with male painters commissioned by men, but the viewer is female. Women are taught to follow the desires of these men, to fulfill the only role presented that they can have: that of a mother. However, it has been argued that, rather than depicting motherhood, the artists instead depicted the “prestige of the church," inciting fear, wonder and reverence via halos, gold and the closest to photorealism they could get. You can see through this that a woman passing through her local church would be in awe of what she saw and want to emulate the figure in the painting.
Mother Meng
We can see a similar pattern arise even earlier in China with Mother Meng.
There are similarities between Meng and the Madonna, seen in how they both embody a submissive, selfless attitude desired of women. They present the role needed of mothers, as caretakers of their children before being people in their own right. However, Meng comes from a collectivist rather than individualistic society, leading to differences in result.
By fulfilling the role set by her, a woman could aid society as a whole rather than gain personal glory. There was no golden halo.
Meng was mother to the famous philosopher Mencius, to whom she showed her dedication to by symbolically cutting her weaving when her son disregarded his education, read as: setting aside her own hobbies to focus on her son’s education. This was at a time where education was stressed in importance, due to the introduction of civil examinations which would allow young men to climb the social ladder.
Once again we can see how depictions of motherhood always held an ulterior motive of the artist to suit a wider need in society. Whether that was to display the power of the church or to present the importance of education.
Early Renaissance
The emerging romantic attitudes towards motherhood excited a change in depictions of the Madonna and child. These, despite retaining their uniformity to one another, did present an increase in intimacy between the figures.
Raphael’s work expresses this in particularly. When compared to the Martini you can see greater skill in the techniques of the piece, from the rendering of the facial features and expression, to the anatomy of the body, complete with the Renaissance style of including a landscape behind the portrait.
The gaze of the Madonna is unfocused and slightly wistful, once again presenting her emotional control in the face of challenges, so as to better help her son. Her face itself is not realistic as such, but instead portrays the beauty standards of the time (we will return to this sub-topic in a later part of this series of essays). The connection between the two is close yet still lacking the intricacy of real relationships. Once again, a simplified and idealized depictions of motherhood, made by men to make women that fulfill the needs of a patriarchal society, rather than present the beauty and complexity of motherhood.
This lack of individuality of the Madonna here, as well as in terms of all depictions of such figure, the lack of individuality for women in society is seen. The Renaissance bought European individualistic ideals to the front, but only for men. Women were still pushed into the role of mother and only mother.
Conclusion (for now)
As we have seen so far, motherhood in art, despite aiming at women, is to suit male needs. It is for men that these women fulfill their ideas of submissiveness and are limited to the role of mother, embodying a type of martyr with the hope of personal glory. The depictions were, ultimately, to suit the needs of a patriarchal society.
Next time we will be looking at the push and pull of female power in Madonna and Child portraits between their symbolism and the beauty standards. Did the male gaze have the sole control over these depictions?
Questions to consider:
How would early depictions of the Madonna and Child be different if power in the church was also given to women?
Why is the Madonna and Child such an enduring symbol of motherhood?
and,
What else do the images shown in today’s essay all have in common?
Further reading:
Currently reading: The Devil wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger
Recommendation: watch The Devil wears Prada film as well if you haven’t already
Have a good day! (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ)