Above: Parmigianino (Giralamo Maria Mazzola 1503- 1540), The Conversion of St Paul, 1527, 177.5 cm x 128.5cm. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
In our Winter print issue: Piero del Pollaiolo (attributed since 2014), Ritratto di una giovane dama ('Portrait of a Young Lady'), 1470-1472;
mixed medium on panel, 45,5 x 32,7 cm. Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan
mixed medium on panel, 45,5 x 32,7 cm. Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan
Pollaiolo's masterpiece, ca. 1470
A discussion with our resident expert Gabriele Reina, PhD., Director of the Luigi M Koelliker Collection. Milan, and former Editor-in-Chief of FMR-Franco Maria Ricci-once Italy's most prestigious art and aesthetics journal also known for its luxury book publishing imprint, also then edited by Dr. Reina. He obtained his Doctorate at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, and holds two Masters from the University of Milan.
The Ritratto di una giovane dama, seen here to the left, is the prize possession of the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan and a work considered to be the "Giaconda" --the 'Mona Lisa" --of that city. The painting, completed in approximately 1472, depicts a mystery: for, it is not clear who this poised and pensive young woman is, though many scholars have attributed her identity to one of three main possibilities: that of the daughter of the great banker Giovanni dei Bardi, or that of Marietta Strozzi from the powerful Strozzi family of Florence or that of a Belgioioso, a likewise notable aristocratic family. ---using colors and versions of tonalites otherwise unknown in their day. First discovered in the collection of the ancient Borromeo family of Lombardy, it was eventually acquired by the collector Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli, himself a descendent of the great Milanese Trivulzio family, who left it to his eponymous museum in 1879. The work was restored to great acclaim in 1951.
There are several prominent examples of this style of painting to be found in the late 15th century--for example another work of Piero dell Pollaiolo or his brother Antonio at the Uffizi in Florence; or the Metropolitan Museum of Art The question arises as to what makes this particular giovane dama so outstanding? Certainly, the technical ideals are all there: she is depicted against a blue sky laced with a few clouds, posing in profile in a style typical of the Italian court and its emphasis on the vir illustris, one a concept inspired by the medals and coinage of imperial Rome. The open-air environment of the painting signals a perfect harmony between nature and feminine beauty according to the classical ideals reestablished by the Renaissance. But why is this work considered "great"? What are the elements to this painting that supersede other similar portraits of their time and place and aristocratic subject matter?
In this issue Dr. Reina takes us through carefully detailed, painstakingly technical analyses of the various components to the painting that render it universally recognized masterpiece of its kind. Unlike many art historians, his discussion his free of filler descriptions and academic cant, focusing strictly on the powers of technique on the part of the artist.
Soon to be featured on our new You Tube Channel
The Ritratto di una giovane dama, seen here to the left, is the prize possession of the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan and a work considered to be the "Giaconda" --the 'Mona Lisa" --of that city. The painting, completed in approximately 1472, depicts a mystery: for, it is not clear who this poised and pensive young woman is, though many scholars have attributed her identity to one of three main possibilities: that of the daughter of the great banker Giovanni dei Bardi, or that of Marietta Strozzi from the powerful Strozzi family of Florence or that of a Belgioioso, a likewise notable aristocratic family. ---using colors and versions of tonalites otherwise unknown in their day. First discovered in the collection of the ancient Borromeo family of Lombardy, it was eventually acquired by the collector Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli, himself a descendent of the great Milanese Trivulzio family, who left it to his eponymous museum in 1879. The work was restored to great acclaim in 1951.
There are several prominent examples of this style of painting to be found in the late 15th century--for example another work of Piero dell Pollaiolo or his brother Antonio at the Uffizi in Florence; or the Metropolitan Museum of Art The question arises as to what makes this particular giovane dama so outstanding? Certainly, the technical ideals are all there: she is depicted against a blue sky laced with a few clouds, posing in profile in a style typical of the Italian court and its emphasis on the vir illustris, one a concept inspired by the medals and coinage of imperial Rome. The open-air environment of the painting signals a perfect harmony between nature and feminine beauty according to the classical ideals reestablished by the Renaissance. But why is this work considered "great"? What are the elements to this painting that supersede other similar portraits of their time and place and aristocratic subject matter?
In this issue Dr. Reina takes us through carefully detailed, painstakingly technical analyses of the various components to the painting that render it universally recognized masterpiece of its kind. Unlike many art historians, his discussion his free of filler descriptions and academic cant, focusing strictly on the powers of technique on the part of the artist.
Soon to be featured on our new You Tube Channel