Portrait of Alfonso d'Avalos with a bellboy
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| Portrait of Alfonso d'Avalos with a bellboy |
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| Titian , 1533 |
| Oil on canvas |
| 110 × 80 cm |
| Getty Museum |
The portrait of Alfonso d'Avalos with a page is a painting by Titian from 1533. It shows Alfonso de Ávalos y de Aquino , general of Emperor Charles V , at the age of 31. The painting, which has been in the possession of the Getty Museum in Los Angeles since 2004 , is considered a masterpiece of Venetian portraiture and a highlight of the Getty collection.
history
The picture was painted in Bologna in 1533. After Alfonso d'Avalos death it came as heir to his son, the Marquis Francesco Ferdinando d'Avalos (around 1530-1571). The painting likely remained in the family until an unknown date. It came to Poland for an unknown reason, was there successively in the possession of Jan Sobieski and Stanislaus II August Poniatowski, and was probably donated to the Potocki family, who owned it until 1921. In 1921 Alfred Potocki (1786–1862) sold the picture to Comtess Martine-Marie-Pol de Béhague (1870–1939), who bequeathed her art collection, including the Titian portrait, to her nephew Hubert de Ganay.
In 1989, his heirs had a large part of the Monte Carlo collection auctioned off at Sotheby’s . The following year the insurance group Axa acquired the Tizian portrait for 65 million FFs through an agent . Axa loaned the painting to the Louvre for a period of twelve years with the option to purchase it for a preferential price within this period: the price paid by Axa plus inflation compensation. The deal was initiated by the long-time director of the Louvre, Pierre Rosenberg . His successor, Henri Loyrette , missed the deadline, and the picture went to the Getty Museum for $ 70 million in 2004, but the Getty Museum has never confirmed the amount. Since the picture was in private hands and the Réunion des Musées Nationaux opposed a purchase, the French state could not veto the sale in the USA.
After “Venus and Adonis” (1555/1560) and “Penitent Magdalena” (1555/15615), the portrait is the third work by Titian in the Getty collection.
Alfonso d'Avalos
Alfonso d'Avalos was a nephew of Fernando Francesco d'Avalos di Pescara , a commander of Charles V's troops during the Italian Wars . After his death in 1525 he followed his uncle into office. In 1533, when the picture was painted, D'Avalos had already distinguished himself as the leader of a vanguard of 1,500 mercenaries and arquebuses at the Battle of Pavia (1525) , when the French King Francis I was captured . On November 25, 1525 he was appointed captain general ( capitano general ) of the infantry by the emperor . After the death of the Marchese of Pescara he inherited his title and fiefdom, in 1528 the titles Prince of Francavilla and Count of Montescaglioso and Belcastro were added. In 1526, together with Antonio de Leyva, he forced the Duke of Milan Francesco II. Sforza to surrender Milan and thus to stop his anti-Habsburg policy. As a result, he was involved in numerous acts of war in Northern Italy as a leader, was captured by Andrea Doria during the fighting around Naples , at that time in alliance with France, but was able to take advantage of Andrea Doria's dissatisfaction with his French allies during the captivity. which eventually led Andreas Dorias to change sides to the imperial family. In 1529 he led an army unit of 5,000 men from Apulia to Tuscany and was involved in the reinstatement of the Medici in 1531, in 1532 he came to the aid of Ferdinand von Habsburg in his fight against the Turks with a force of 5,000 infantry .
In 1533, when Titian, the emperor's court painter, painted his portrait, Alfonso d'Avalos was at the height of his prestige and power.
description
The picture shows the three-quarter portrait of Alfonso de Alvares with a page in front of a diffuse, almost black background. His gaze directed to the right is concentrated and thoughtful, and he grips the handle of his sword with his left hand. He doesn't seem to notice the child who is just below his waist and who is holding his helmet.
He is dressed in a black lacquered, elaborately decorated parade armor with golden ornaments . All components of the armor, the cervical collar that protects the neck between the helmet and armor, the breastplate, the armor with the two striking six-part floating discs , elbow tiles , the iron glove are artfully decorated with chased and gilded ornaments. He wears the Order of the Golden Fleece on a tight link chain made of delicate metal plates and reddish flint stones set in gold over the neck. The brayette is made of a black, tricot-like fabric with interwoven metal threads, the same fabric from which the bellboys robe is sewn. The light falls from the top right on the two people, illuminates the two faces brightly and is reflected here and there on the shiny black armor.
Web links
- Portrait of Alfonso d'Avalos, Marchese del Vasto, in Armor with a Page. The J. Paul Getty Museum
- Getty * Museum acquires masterpiece from Titian
- Alfonso d'Avalos Acquired by The Getty, artdayly.org
- Will Bennett: The $ 70 million soldier. The Telegraph, February 23, 2004
- Gaspare de Caro: Avalos, Alfonso d ', marchese del Vasto in: treccani.it.
Notes and individual references
- ↑ Provenance , accessed June 11, 2015.
- ↑ 2004 value: $ 7.6 million
- ↑ Will Bennett reports on The Getty's spectacular purchase of a Titian masterpiece in: The Telegraph. February 23, 2004. Retrieved June 11, 2015