Artwork
Portrait of a Man
Portrait of a Man is an oil painting by the Early Baroque Italian artist Andrea del Sarto. It is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The painting portrays a solitary male sitter rendered in profile, identified as a learned ecclesiastic or humanist figure, likely a canon from Pisa and a close associate of Andrea del Sarto. He wears a four-pointed cap and a grey-blue robe that signal clerical or academic status, and he holds a small book that may contain Petrarchan verses or a prayer booklet, underscoring themes of scholarship and devotion. The composition reflects the sitter's role as an intellectual companion and possible patron, a reading supported by scholarly analysis of the attire and the attributed subject in the work's provenance.
Technique & Style
The work is executed in oil paint and currently presented on a canvas support, having been transferred from its original wooden panel.
The work is executed in oil paint and currently presented on a canvas support, having been transferred from its original wooden panel. Measuring 66.7 cm in height by 50.5 cm in width, the painting depicts a male figure in profile against a green background. The subject wears a four-pointed cap and a gray-blue garment, holding a small book in his right hand.
The handling reflects the artist's late style, dated approximately 1528–1529. The surface underwent significant cleaning in 1983, an event that prompted a re-evaluation of its attribution and confirmed its status as a late work by Andrea del Sarto, overturning earlier hypotheses that suggested other creators.
History & Provenance
Executed by Andrea del Sarto circa 1528–1529 during the artist's final years, this oil portrait was originally painted on panel before being transferred to canvas. The work remained in Florence until 1905. It was sold in 1912 to the New York firm Gimpel & Wildenstein, which held the piece until at least 1915.
Subsequent owners included Mrs. Morton F. Plant, Mrs. William Hayward, and Mrs. John E. Rovensky, the latter retaining it until 1956. On 16 January 1957, Jack and Belle Linsky purchased the painting. They held the work until 1982, when the Jack and Belle Linsky Foundation donated it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it resides today.
Context
The Portrait of a Man has been the subject of scholarly debate since its reattribution to Andrea del Sarto in the early twentieth century. Initial attributions varied, with Freedberg proposing Santi di Tito in 1963 and Shearman favoring Francesco Salviati in 1965, before Freedberg later reconsidered the work as a late Sarto after its cleaning and transfer to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1983. Christiansen subsequently dated the painting to 1528–1530, linking its sober attire to a canon of Pisa and intimate associate of the artist, a hypothesis supported by Vasari's biography.
A dissenting view from Costamagna and Fabre, later endorsed by Zeri, argued for Iacopino del Conte's authorship and a slightly later date of 1535–1537. Within the artist's oeuvre, the portrait occupies a late phase, characterized by restrained composition and psychological depth, reflecting Sarto's mature style and the Florentine High Renaissance emphasis on individualized likeness.
Overview
Portrait of a Man is an oil painting held in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. While traditionally attributed to the Renaissance artist Andrea del Sarto, its proposed creation date of approximately 1550 presents a challenge to direct authorship, as the artist died decades earlier. The work captures a male figure, rendered with a focus on his distinct features and attire.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Andrea del Sarto was an Italian painter from Florence, whose career flourished during the High Renaissance and early Mannerism.
