Divine Conception: The Art of the Annunciation

As long as people have made art, they have struggled with a fundamental question: How can we convey the divine in the human? How can we evoke the invisible in the visible? Divine Conception offers a stunning tour of the ways that artists have grappled with the problem in depicting the scene of the Annunciation. Focusing on twelve specific aspects of the varying story—such as versions where Mary is reading when the angel arrives, or where Joseph’s presence is depicted—the book explores images in the context of the period in which they were made. Starting with the Latin West and running through the mid-sixteenth century, the book covers paintings, illuminated manuscripts, ivories, mosaics, sculptures, wall paintings, and metalwork. In each case, Sarah Drummond highlights the role played in the conception and execution of the artwork by the artistic conventions of the period, the requirements of patrons, the specifics of devotional practices and sermons, and theological concerns and contemporary religious treatises. Sweeping in scope and deeply learned, this book will enthrall all fans of religious art.