Madonna and Child, St. John the Baptist, St. Catherine and St. Zacharias

Madonna and Child, St. John the Baptist,
St. Catherine of Alexandria and St. Zacharias
Emilian Master of the late 16th century
Circle of Francesco Mazzola, known as Parmigianino
(Parma 1503 – Casalmaggiore 1540)

Oil on canvas
Golden frame
Canvas cm. 68 x 80
Frame cm. 90 x 102

Excellent condition

This magnificent Emilian canvas from the late 16th century depicts the Virgin and Child embracing St. John the Baptist, while on the sides of the scene, portrayed in profile, St. Catherine of Alexandria turns towards the Madonna, and St. Zaccaria, father of the little John the Baptist, observes the two Children with a stern look.
The work, albeit with notable compositional and chromatic variations, takes up the famous painting by Parmigianino "The Madonna of San Zaccaria" (size cm. 75.5 x 60) datable between 1530 and 1533 and preserved in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.
The extraordinary success of this masterpiece, decreed not only by its beauty, but also by the surreal atmosphere of the landscape and the highly esoteric traits of the characters, pushed the best Emilian masters to reproduce it, each with their own pictorial characteristics.
In this exciting and very particular canvas, the Author maintains the unmistakable style of the great Master of Parma, but stands out for a palette of extremely bright colors, combined with an exceptional knowledge of the use of color.
Also very interesting is the inclusion in the composition of Saint Catherine of Alexandria with her iconographic attribute, which takes the place of Mary Magdalene, the protagonist of the original painting by Mazzola exhibited in the Uffizi.

The canvas is in excellent condition complete with an important gilded frame.