This oil painting reeks history. In fact, I'm lucky to see it every year at the Galleria Borghese in Rome Italy, so literally it is like seeing this Portrait of a Man, by Antonello da Messina, more frequently than my Aunt Janie. As a signature feature of the Italian Renaissance [see how I reference something we are doing in class, or read in class], portraits were one of the ways in which new rising families claimed significance and recorded their history. Rather than angels, or saints, Italy of the 1400s began to produce pictures of the "common man" or "woman". And by common, I mean merely unknown, not poor. Getting close to a portrait of a man or woman from the Renaissance past makes me thankful for the new oils that had been invented in Northern Europe [another reference to a history fact learned in class]. According to a quote on Wikipedia [ugh, did I have to use that site--well, it's an actual quote with the source listed, a reputable book from 1966, so it's OK, I guess; notice how I gave the source], Messina was the "first Italian painter for whom the individual portrait was an art form in its own right." He was from Messina, Italy, in Sicily, and painted this image around 1475; it's oil paint on wood.
What do you notice about the painting?
He wears a black hat that hangs long past his shoulders. He also wears a red robe that has been carefully shadowed to indicate wear and velvet fluff. Does he wear a necklace? I had not noticed that in Rome. What I spend most of my time is looking at his eyes, his mouth, and most of all, his slightly shadowed beard. He has tiny stubble! Looking at the oil painting, I see the past, and know that is the closest I will get to shaking a hand with a man from the late 1400s [see how it is OK to use "I" on this blog, if you so choose]. Before the age of Canon, this guy looks real. To see his other male portraits (I was curious, would they be similar or different? Similar style, different men), click here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Male_portraits_by_Antonello_da_Messina
