Portrait of Cardinal Ludovico Trevisan

Portrait of Cardinal Ludovico Trevisan

Artist	Andrea Mantegna
Year	1459–1460
Medium	Tempera on panel
Dimensions	44.8 cm × 33.9 cm (17.6 in × 13.3 in)
Location	Gemäldegalerie, Berlin

The Portrait of Cardinal Ludovico Trevisan is a painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Andrea Mantegna, dated to c. 1459-1460.

History

The identification of the painting's subject as the Venetian cardinal Ludovico Trevisan is confirmed by several copies of the work, as that once in the Bromley Davenport Collection including the man's name, titles and coat of arms, as well as by a medal attributed to Cristoforo di Geremia or an etching included in the 1630 Illustrium virorum elogia, where it is also specified that the portrait belonged to Francesco Leone of Padua.

Cardinal Trevisan, later also known as Scarampi Mezzarota, took part in the council of Mantua in 1459: the portrait was commissioned from Mantegna when the artist was still in Padua, shortly before he established himself in Mantua.

Description

The cardinal is portrayed from in a three-quarter position over a dark background, with strong chiaroscuro effects which enhance the volume of the figure, turning it into a king of Roman-style bust in painting.

The serious and concentrated glance and the detail of the closed lips underline the strong character of the man, who was not only a politician and diplomat, but also a war leader. Mantegna gave a notable attention not only to the details of the face (lips, wrinkles, the clerical tonsure), but also to the garments, indicating his high social status.

Sources

La Grande Storia dell'Arte - Il Quattrocento, Il Sole 24 Ore, 2005
Kleiner, Frank S. Gardner's Art Through the Ages, 13th Edition, 2008
Manca, Joseph. Andrea Mantegna and the Italian Renaissance, 2006

Works by Andrea Mantegna

Ovetari Chapel (1448–1457)
The Adoration of the Shepherds (c. 1450–1451)
St. Jerome in the Wilderness (c. 1451)
San Luca Altarpiece (1453)
St. James Led to His Execution (c. 1455)
Presentation at the Temple (c. 1455)
Agony in the Garden (c. 1458)
Crucifixion (1459)
Agony in the Garden (c. 1459)
Portrait of Cardinal Ludovico Trevisan (c. 1459–1460)
St. Bernardino of Siena between Two Angels (1460)
Death of the Virgin (c. 1461)
Portrait of a Man (c. 1460)
Portrait of Francesco Gonzaga (c. 1461)
Madonna with Sleeping Child (c. 1470)
St. George (c. 1460)
San Zeno Altarpiece (1460)
St. Sebastian (of Vienna) (c. 1459)
Adoration of the Magi (1462)
The Ascension (1462)
The Circumcision (1464)
Portrait of Carlo de' Medici (c. 1459–1466)
St. Sebastian (of the Louvre) (c. 1480)
The Madonna of the Cherubim (c. 1485)
Triumphs of Caesar (c. 1486)
Christ as the Suffering Redeemer (c. 1488–1500)
Lamentation over the Dead Christ (c. 1490)
Madonna of the Quarry (1490)
St. Sebastian (of Venice) (1490)
Madonna della Vittoria (1496)
Judith and Holofernes (1495)
Trivulzio Madonna (1497)
Parnassus (Mars and Venus) (1497)
Ecce homo (c. 1500)
Holy Family (c. 1500)
Triumph of the Virtues (c. 1502)

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