Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary 

Francesco Albani made this red chalk drawing, *Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary*, in Italy in the 17th century. It depicts a religious scene with several figures attending to the newborn Mary. This sketch was made at a time when the Catholic Church was a major patron of the arts. Artists like Albani were tasked with visually reinforcing religious doctrine and inspiring piety among the faithful, in a period marked by religious and political conflict between Catholic and Protestant states. Looking at the drawing, we can consider how Albani uses specific visual cues, like the hovering angels and the focus on Mary’s birth, to create a sense of the divine. The grid-like structure visible beneath the chalk hints at an institutional and academic approach. Artists were formally trained and their drawings were often preparations for larger, more public displays of devotion such as frescoes and altarpieces inside churches. To fully understand the drawing we can examine the historical context, theological interpretations of the Virgin Mary’s birth, and the artist’s biography by consulting archives and libraries. These all add to our understanding of the artwork.