1552
oil
canvas
From the collection of Art Institute of Chicago
Dominant colour
Gian Lodovico Madruzzo is a 1552 oil by Giovanni Battista Moroni, a Mannerism work, held at Art Institute of Chicago.
This painting shows a man sitting in a chair, wearing fancy clothes. He looks serious and important. The artist paid close attention to the details of his clothes and face. This portrait is interesting because it was painted during a significant event in history. The subject, Gian Lodovico Madruzzo, was a notable figure at the time. To learn more about the style used in this painting, look into the technique of chiaroscuro.
One of the most accomplished painters working in the realist tradition of the Lombardy region of Northern Italy, Giovanni Battista Moroni was above all an outstanding portraitist. Here, he depicted Gian Lodovico Madruzzo. Moroni painted this commanding likeness—along with that of the subject’s brother, Gian Federico Madruzzo (National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC)—during the Council of Trent, a meeting to address challenges to the Catholic Church posed by the Protestant Reformation. Gian Lodovico Madruzzo eventually succeeded his uncle as prince-bishop, ruler of the city of Trent, in 1567.
Probably Madruzzo family, Castello del Buon Consiglio, Trent; by descent to Carlo Emanuele Madruzzo (died 1658) [the painting and its pendant, the portrait of his brother Gian Federico Madruzzo now in the National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., have been identified as the “due quadri de ritratti de Madruzzi” recorded in an inventory of the Castello made between December 1658 and January 13, 1659, see Oberziner 1900 and Shapley, 1979]; possibly his cousin Charlotte de Lénoncourt [see Oberziner 1900]. Barons Roccabruna, Trent, by 1682; by descent to Giacomo Roccabruna (died 1735) [The picture…
Paris, Galerie Trotti, Tableaux anciens de l’école italienne, 10 January–10 February, 1909, no. 20. Art Institute of Chicago, A Century of Progress, June 1–November 1, 1933, no. 129. Art Institute of Chicago, A Century of Progress, June 1–November 1, 1934, no. 50. The Art Institute of Chicago, Masterpiece of the Month, September 1944, no cat. The Dayton Art Museum, Old Masters from Midwestern Museums, March 5–April 19, 1948, no. 12. The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Great Portraits by Famous Painters, November 13–December 21, 1952, no. 3. Bergamo, Palazzo della Regina, Giovan Battista Moroni…
Read the full account in the museum source.
Giovanni Battista Moroni, also known as Giambattista Moroni was an Italian painter of the Mannerist school.
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