Technique
The Doni Tondo is believed to be the only existing panel picture Michelangelo painted without the aid of assistants; and, unlike his Manchester Madonna and Entombment (both National Gallery, London) the attribution to him has never been questioned. The juxtaposition of bright colors foreshadows the same use of color in Michelangelo’s later Sistine ceiling frescoes. The folds of the drapery are sharply modeled, and the skin of the figures is so smooth, it looks as if the medium is marble. The surface treatment of the massive figures resembles a sculpture more than a painting. The nude figures in the background have softer modeling and look to be precursors to the ignudi, the male nude figures in the Sistine Ceiling frescoes. Michelangelo’s technique includes shading from the most intense colors first to the lighter shades on top, using the darker colors as shadows, a technique called cangiante. By applying the pigment in a certain way, Michelangelo created an "unfocused" effect in the background and focused detail in the foreground. The most vibrant color is located within the Virgin’s garments, which signifies her importance within the image. X-rays of the painting show that Michelangelo incorporated every known pigment used at the time. The masculinity of Mary could be explained by Michelangelo’s use of male models for female figures, as was done for the Sistine Chapel.
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