Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels, Saints and Donors before 1330

Curator: Looking at this artwork, it strikes me as both serene and rather imposing. What do you feel? Editor: Imposing is the right word! I mean, all those halos glinting in the gold leaf...It's kind of a visual power play, right? But I also feel a peculiar detachment from the figures, like watching a carefully staged tableau. Curator: Indeed. What we’re viewing is a tempera on wood painting titled "Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels, Saints and Donors," attributed to Jacopo del Casentino, created before 1330. Currently, it resides in the Städel Museum. Understanding its socio-historical context illuminates so much. The hierarchies, the symbolism...it’s a reflection of its time. Editor: Absolutely! But the artist makes me wonder, what's his read on what divinity actually means to everyday folks? Is this divinity something we should strive for? Are the people on the front looking towards something like sainthood and leaving something on the Earth, as donors? It looks so stoic but warm too... how is this? Curator: Precisely. These "donor portraits" were often inserted into devotional works to symbolize piety and to literally place oneself in proximity to the sacred figures. Their inclusion can also reveal interesting things about social mobility and class aspirations. Consider the implications of commissioning such a work in a society wrestling with notions of predestination. It says a lot. Editor: I get that. There's a strange mix here, you know? Like a beautiful icon in the way Mary sits there so poised, but the donor placement feels almost subversive or even transactional somehow. A divine endorsement—accessible through money? I'm intrigued. It just really plays with my head with how devotion mixes with something akin to transaction. It is almost gross in this way, so, it challenges the very devotion itself, don't you agree? Curator: Absolutely! I concur it challenges these ideas around devotion that we grapple with and provides tension and friction into these narratives! What this exploration into Jacopo del Casentino really leaves for us is a rich discussion in the themes around that particular era's politics. It really provides the viewers food for thought on devotion. Editor: Indeed! It's so fascinating when artwork offers some much to discuss and still provide that spark of uncertainty for you to think over the themes.