Madonna of the kiss

In the section dedicated to the 19th-century painters of Prato, there is a significant painting with the intimate encounter between the Madonna and the Child Jesus, entitled Madonna of the Kiss. This artwork was made in 1843 by Antonio Marini from Prato.
The painting depicts the tender embrace between the Virgin Mary, kneeling on the grass, dressed in red and wrapped in a blue cloak according to the traditional painting style, and the Child Jesus, reaching toward her to give her a kiss and protecting her with his small arms. In the sweet gaze of the Virgin Mary we can see the love for the son. This intimate and modest work transmits to the viewer the tenderness of maternal love. On the right, a white lily, symbol of the Virgin Mary's purity, blooms on the lawn. There is a very clear sky above the two protagonists, in harmony with the candour of the child's body, which is only clothed in a transparent material.
The painting, with its rounded shape (that is, with a semicircular upper part) also has a rich golden frame. It is an example of the artist’s approach to the purism trend. In fact, he presents an artwork inspired by the Umbrian fifteenth-century painting of Perugino and the young Raphael, with simplified and well-marked figures.
In the following years, the painting was replicated many times, also for foreign clients. However, the version on display here was owned by Marini himself, so much so that his widow Giulia Nuti in 1867 wanted to donate it to the Municipality of Prato for exhibition in the Gallery, which was then housed in the Town Hall. Today, on the top floor of the museum, this painting can be admired alongside a portrait of his wife. They were made by a mutual friend, Franz Adolf von Stürler.