Gustave Doré was one of the most important illustrators of the 19th century. Throughout his career he contributed to well-known Paris journals and newspapers and his first work exhibited in the Salon was an illustration. However, Doré was anxious to gain recognition for his talents as painter and, later in life, as a sculptor. In 1851, he entered his first painting in the Paris Salon and his first sculpture was entered in 1877. Like his illustrations and paintings, Doré's sculpture primarily depicted academic and religious subjects.

The life-size plaster of the 'Madonna' exhibited in the Salon of 1880 was well received by contemporary critics. The model also proved popular with the public and was edited in bronze in several sizes by Thiébaut Frères.