Portrait of Cardinal Niccolò Albergati
Encyclopedia
The Portrait of Cardinal Niccolò Albergati is a painting by early Netherlandish painter Jan van Eyck
, dating to around 1431 and currently housed in the Kunsthistorisches Museum
of Vienna
, Austria
.
. During a peace congress in Antwerp, he met van Eyck, who portrayed him in a drawing in which the artist added notes on the colors in order to execute a later painting portrait. The drawing is now in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen of Dresden
, Germany.
The cardinal is portrayed from three-quarters, as usual in the Flemish painting
since as early as the 1430s, on a dark background which enhances the figure, which is instead subject to a bright light source.
As common in van Eyck's work, attention to detail is maximum, thanks to his technique using successive layers of colors diluted with oil, which allowed him deep effects of transparency and lucidity. Comparison with the preparatory drawing shows that van Eyck changed several realistic details, such as the depth of the shoulders, the lower curve of the nose, the depth of the mouth and mainly the size of the ear, perhaps to strengthen the impression of seniority and, consequently, of authority of the cardinal.
Jan van Eyck
Jan van Eyck was a Flemish painter active in Bruges and considered one of the best Northern European painters of the 15th century....
, dating to around 1431 and currently housed in the Kunsthistorisches Museum
Kunsthistorisches Museum
The Kunsthistorisches Museum is an art museum in Vienna, Austria. Housed in its festive palatial building on Ringstraße, it is crowned with an octagonal dome...
of Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
.
Description
Albergati was a diplomat working under pope Martin VPope Martin V
Pope Martin V , born Odo Colonna, was Pope from 1417 to 1431. His election effectively ended the Western Schism .-Biography:...
. During a peace congress in Antwerp, he met van Eyck, who portrayed him in a drawing in which the artist added notes on the colors in order to execute a later painting portrait. The drawing is now in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen of Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, Germany.
The cardinal is portrayed from three-quarters, as usual in the Flemish painting
Flemish painting
Flemish painting flourished from the early 15th century until the 17th century. Flanders delivered the leading painters in Northern Europe and attracted many promising young painters from neighbouring countries. These painters were invited to work at foreign courts and had a Europe-wide influence...
since as early as the 1430s, on a dark background which enhances the figure, which is instead subject to a bright light source.
As common in van Eyck's work, attention to detail is maximum, thanks to his technique using successive layers of colors diluted with oil, which allowed him deep effects of transparency and lucidity. Comparison with the preparatory drawing shows that van Eyck changed several realistic details, such as the depth of the shoulders, the lower curve of the nose, the depth of the mouth and mainly the size of the ear, perhaps to strengthen the impression of seniority and, consequently, of authority of the cardinal.