Maternal Love 1784

Francesco Bartolozzi created this print, "Maternal Love," using stipple engraving, a technique that builds up tone through tiny dots, around the late 18th century. The oval composition cradles a scene of intimate tenderness, dominated by a mother and her children. The figures are arranged in a pyramidal structure, which lends stability to the composition. Bartolozzi masterfully uses light and shadow to model the forms, creating a soft, almost dreamlike quality. The stipple technique allows for subtle gradations of tone, which enhances the sensuality of the scene. This print reflects the Enlightenment's changing attitudes toward motherhood. It moves away from the earlier representations of women as strictly religious figures, as the mother is presented as a nurturing and sensual being. Here, the bodies convey a sense of naturalness and warmth, echoing Jean-Jacques Rousseau's philosophies on naturalism. Note how Bartolozzi uses the texture of the print-making to further soften the edges of the figures, suggesting a sentimental vision of domesticity that was becoming increasingly valued during this period.