Assunzione della Vergine 1510

Editor: This is Ambrogio Bergognone's *Assunzione della Vergine* from 1510, made with oil paint. Looking at it, the verticality of the composition really strikes me. All these figures ascending upward, gazing... I wonder, what do you see when you look at this piece? Curator: I notice immediately the striking contrast between the labor-intensive, almost primitive application of paint in the lower register—those earthly, rugged faces—compared to the ethereal, almost decorative quality of the celestial figures above. It’s as though we are seeing two distinct modes of production existing simultaneously, reflecting the earthly versus the divine, but created through the same fundamental materiality. Where does that contrast come from in the material process, and what does it signify for the commissioner of the artwork? Editor: So, you're saying that the physical handling of the paint itself is almost telling a story, reflecting the earthly versus the divine through craft? Curator: Precisely. Consider also the materiality of the Virgin's cloak. Its deep, expensive ultramarine, meticulously applied with delicate white dots. It signifies not just religious importance but also considerable economic investment, both in the material pigment and the artist's skill to render it. Who had the economic and material means to request and achieve this piece? And for what audience? Editor: I see now; the materials and how the artist used them reveal the social forces at play, like economics and patronage influencing even a religious image. That is amazing! Curator: Indeed. By attending to materiality and production, we can unlock new narratives and see the assumptions implicit in our separation of 'art' and 'craft'.