| Portrait of Jacopo Strada | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Titian |
| Year | 1567–1568 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 125 cm× 95 cm(49 in× 37 in) |
| Location | Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna |
The Portrait of Jacopo Strada is an oil on canvas portrait of the court librarian Jacopo Strada by Titian, from 1567-1568. It is held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, in Vienna. [1]
Strada was not only an official bookkeeper, but also had many other qualities, and this portrait portrays him in his study surrounded by objects displaying his knowledge. He is shown wearing a gold chain, probably awarded him the previous year (1566), when he was appointed Antiquarius Caesareus by his employer Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor.
The inscription upper right reads JACOBVUS DE STRADA CIVIS ROMANVS CAESS. ANTIQVARIVS ET COM. BELIC. AN: AETAT: LI: et C.M.D.L. XVI (Jacopo de Strada, citizen of Rome, imperial Antiquary and Minister, aged 51 in the year 1566). The painting is signed top left: "TITIANVS F (ECIT)". The letter on the table additionally contains the words Titian Vecellio Venezia. [2]
Jacopo Strada, who commissioned the work, is portrayed at the age of 51. Quite unusually for this type of portrait at the time is the fact that the sitter does not look directly at the viewer, but is depicted while doing his work. Strada's attitude seems to express that he is communicating with a person at his side, out of frame, to whom he is presenting a statuette depicting the goddess Venus. Several coins are scattered on the table, indicating Strada's numismatic interest.
To give a little dynamism to the composition and to emphasize the movement of the sitter, the artist lets Strada's opulent fur cape slide over his right shoulder so it is only supported by his left shoulder. This fur, the shiny red silk doublet with the black velvet waistcoat over it, documents the sitter's prosperity. The gold chain wound in four turns around the neck bears a pendant where a helmeted head can be seen in profile. The chain and sword identify the model as a nobleman. The cartouche mounted on a pillar at the top right bears an inscription. The pillar itself is structurally incomprehensible and probably serves the sole purpose of carrying the cartouche. [3]
A century later this painting was documented in David Teniers the Younger's catalog Theatrum Pictorium of the art collection of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm in 1659 [4] and again in 1673, [5] but the portrait had already enjoyed notoriety in Teniers' portrayals of the Archduke's art collection:
The Three Philosophers is an oil painting on canvas attributed to the Italian High Renaissance artist Giorgione. It shows three philosophers – one young, one middle-aged, and one old.
The Stallburg is a renaissance-style building in the Vienna city center located between Josefsplatz and Michaelerplatz. It is part of the Hofburg Palace.
Violante is an oil painting attributed to Titian, dated to around 1515 and now held at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
The Madonna of the Cherries is a 1515 painting by Titian, heavily influenced by the work of Giovanni Bellini. Originally oil on wood, it was later transferred to canvas. During the 17th century it formed part of the collection of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm, where it was copied by David Teniers. It is now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
The Bravo is an oil painting usually attributed to Titian, dated to around 1516-17 and now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. The painting can be seen as one of a number of Venetian paintings of the 1510s showing two or three half-length figures with heads close together, often with their expressions and interactions enigmatic. Most of these are "Giorgionesque" genre or tronie subjects where the subjects are anonymous, though the group includes Titian's The Tribute Money, with Christ as the main figure, which in terms of style is similar to this painting, and his Lucretia and her Husband, also in Vienna, where at least the woman's identity is clear, if not that of the man.
Theatrum Pictorium, or Theatre of Painting, is a short-hand name of a book published in the 1660s by David Teniers the Younger for his employer, the Archduke Leopold Wilhelm of Austria. It catalogs 243 Italian paintings in the Archduke's collection of over 1300 paintings. The paintings are reproduced by engravings made by various engravers after reduced-size copies (modelli) created by Teniers. David Teniers' brother Abraham Teniers was involved in organizing the publication of the work. A second edition with page numbers was published in 1673.
Jan van Troyen was a Flemish engraver and etcher. He is mainly known for the work he did for David Teniers the Younger on the illustrations for the Theatrum Pictorium, an publication which gave an overview of the paintings in the collection of the Archduke Leopold Wilhelm.
Judith with the head of Holofernes is a 1610–1615 painting by the painter Carlo Saraceni, now held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
Saint Margaret and the Dragon is the title shared by two paintings of Saint Margaret by the Renaissance painter Raphael, both executed in about 1518. One is held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, the other in the Louvre in Paris.
Gallery of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm in Brussels is a 1651 painting of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm's Italian art collection by the Flemish Baroque painter David Teniers the Younger, now held in Petworth House in England.
The Archduke Leopold Wilhelm in his Painting Gallery in Brussels is a 1651 painting of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm's Italian art collection by the Flemish Baroque painter David Teniers the Younger, now held in the Prado in Madrid.
Archduke Leopold Wilhelm and the artist in the archducal picture gallery in Brussels is a 1651 painting of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm's Italian art collection by the Flemish Baroque painter David Teniers the Younger, now held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
Archduke Leopold Wilhelm and the artist in the archducal picture gallery in Brussels is a 1653 painting of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm's Italian art collection by the Flemish Baroque painter David Teniers the Younger, now held in the collection of Museo Lázaro Galdiano in Madrid.
Gallery of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm in Brussels is a 1651 painting of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm's Italian art collection by the Flemish Baroque painter David Teniers the Younger, now in the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium.
Gallery of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm in Brussels is a painting of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm's Italian art collection by the Flemish Baroque painter David Teniers the Younger, now held in the Schleissheim Palace. It dates to the 1650s.
Rest on the Flight into Egypt is a c. 1508 oil on panel painting by Titian, owned by the Marquess of Bath and held at Longleat House near Warminster, Wiltshire, England. The artwork portrays Joseph, Mary, and Jesus as they stop to rest during their flight into Egypt.
Nymph and Shepherd, also called Shepherd and Nymph, is an oil painting by the Venetian master Titian, made about 1570. The painting is in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
Portrait of Fabrizio Salvaresio is an oil painting by Titian. It is signed and dated 1558, and hangs today in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, in Vienna.
The Virgin and Child with Saints Stephen, Jerome and Maurice, also called the Virgin with Three Saints, is a religious painting by Titian which hangs in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
Christ and the Adulteress, also titled Christ and the Woman Taken in Adultery, or The Adulteress before Christ, is an oil painting by Titian, made about 1520, in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, depicting Jesus and the woman taken in adultery.
