One of the main things that Titian’s portraits did was to capture not only the physical likeness of the subject, but also to capture something of the essence of the personality. So what or whom do we see here? To say that Pietro Aretino (1492-1556) was bigger than life would be an understatement, and as we see here, his body takes up 75% of the picture’s surface. His deep burgundy coat has the simmer of a satin finish; his hands are gloved; and he wears a golden chain given to him, it is said, by King Francis I of France. He wears a sage’s beard, and his head and eyes are turned in the direction of someone who might be the target of his acerbic wit. That wit garnered him the moniker, “the scourge of princes,” as Aretino was famous for pointing out their foibles with a charming wit that did not cross the fine lines of courtly courtesy. His wit earned him quite a healthy living as people sometimes paid him to verbally assassinate a rival, while others paid him not to verbally demolish them. He was a literary figure, art collector, bon vivant, promoter and publicist. Looking at this portrait, one can image how he might dominate a room with his physical presence and light it up with his intellect and his wicked tongue.
This is the self-portrait of Titian (1567), born Tiziano de Vecellio in 1490, who became Venice’s most famous painter of the 16th century (though he had stiff competition from Tintoretto and Veronese). He was well known among the princely courts of Europe and became the first major painter with a huge international clientele.
Titian got his start working in the early 1500s with the then hot new bad boy painter, Giorgione. Though Titian gained a lot from working with this handsome, talented and popular painter, whom the Venetians nick named, Zorzon, it did not stop Titian from striving to outshine the man he worked for when they were painting the exterior of the Palazzo Fondaco dei Tedeschi. When Giorgione died suddenly in 1510 during an outbreak of plague, it was Titian who finished some of Giorgione’s work, leaving the provenance of some of the works, like The Sleeping Venus, unclear.
In the portrait above, we can see some of the hallmarks of the early 1500s, such as having the half-figure leaning an arm on a ledge or window sill. The style of the face shows the influence of Giogione in that it allows for a certain mystery. However, Titian’s own style is coming to the fore. The rich detail of the silken fabric, its shine, and brilliant color are all elements that one can see throughout Titian’s work. The composition was common for that time (see work by Giovanni Bellini); however, there was a bit of a difference. It has to do with how Titian poses the sitter’s head. It is not looking directly at us nor is it a strict profile. It is a three quarters view, with the left side of the face fading into the darkness of the background. Yet, the eye that looks toward the viewer is direct and engaging in its gaze. One wonders what kind of conversation one might have with such a gentleman. The movement from the head down around the sleeve is a spiral motion, but there is also a diagonal made by the placement of the arm and mimicked by the turn of the head. The use of diagonals is something that Titian became known for, and using diagonals in a painting is rather tricky, as they can create a sense of imbalance. Titian, however, used them to add dynamism to the portrait. For a better example to show how that works, look at the painting below.
Just in looking at the items found in this painting, one can see that this person is quite prosperous (coins on the table, rich clothing including furs), and is probably someone who deals in art and antiquities. And yes, we are right. Jacopo Strada was the chief artist, architect, and antiquarian for three of the Holy Roman Emperors. In this painting he seems to be presenting an antique statue of Venus to someone just outside of this picture. His head is turned in the direction of this person. Perhaps he is about to hand over the statue to a buyer or perhaps about to try to sell it also to the someone who produced the coins already on the table. Unlike most portraits where the subject sits in still perfection, there is action in this portrait, created by the series of diagonal lines coming from the tilt of the statue and the turn in Strada’s shoulders and head, emphasized by the line of the fur cloak. The position of the arms form diagonals in the opposite direction. These alignments give motion to the subject. Something is happening here. The business of art is in progress, and to be a proven part of the action, Titian has his name on the letter on the table. Interesting way to sign a painting, don’t you think?
These are just a few of the many works of Venice’s most famous artist of that period. They are rich, complex, subtle, and fascinating to experience. Those words are apt descriptions of the wines that come from the region commonly called the Veneto, which runs west, a bit north, and a bit south of Venice itself. So let’s do take a look at what goes on there in terms of good wines to drink while enjoying our art.
Paintings are in public domain.
Marjorie Vernelle is an artist, writer, college professor and traveler. For more see the Pages at ofartandwine.com, or her author page at amazon.com and her art at Vernelle Art Boutique vernellestudio.com.
The Wines of the Veneto
When we think of Italian wines, we often think of Tusany, Puglia or Sicily. However, since the 1990s, an area smaller in size than the three just mentioned has outproduced them all. Yes, the vineyards of the Veneto. Now it is no surprise that this area outside of Venice should produce wines. After all, Venice ruled the Adriatic Sea and the trade routes to the Orient for about a thousand years (7th to 18th centuries) and was known to have every kind of luxury, including fine wines. Yet, it has only been in the last 30 years that the Veneto has pushed the envelop to produce some spectacularly high quality and popular wines.
Everyone has heard of and some of us have tried pronouncing fluently the name of this wine producing area: Valpolicella. It means “valley of the wine cellars” and in those cellars are housed red wines that are second only to Chianti. The dry Amarone, cherry spiced Ripasso and the easy to pair with foods, Valpolicella, all bear the Bandolino DOC, marking the area from where they come.
Okay, let’s stop for a moment to understand what DOC and its companion, DOCG, mean. Wine growing regions in Italy had certain quality controls placed upon them in the 196os. Like the French AOC/AOP, these control the types of grapes used to make the wine, the area from where they come, the maximum proportions of the grapes used, the alcohol content, and the vinification and maturation techniques used. In Italian the DOC means Denominazore di Origine Controlatta. In 1980 the DOCG was added to put e Garantita (guaranteed) to some of the wines. (The French ones have similar meanings and are the following: Appellation d’Origin Controlée and Appellation d’Origin Controlée et Protegée.)
This is a picture of a fine glass of Soave, which comes from the area east of Verona. It is one of Italy’s most popular wines. It bears the name of the area, but the grape it comes from is the Garganega. It has notes of lemon zest, which give it a certain acidity modified by hints of almond.
The area that rests partially in the Veneto and partially in Lombardy is where you will find wines with the Lugana DOC labels. This area is particularly interesting because of the clay and limestone chalk of its terrain and the fact that a grape unique to the area is grown there, the Trebbiano di Lugana. The white wines produced there (in fact only white wines are produced there) have a gentle acidic quality, with a hint of the floral and of peach. Since the area has many small fishing villages, the wine is a wonderful one to pair with fish and seafood dishes.
Lastly, we have the bubbly. Yes, Prosecco. No matter whether it is Brut, Extra Dry, Dry or Demi-sec, it is easy to pair with foods. My favorite suggestion is prosciutto wrapped around cantaloupe. You can create your own drinks, like mimosas or change things up by just adding a strawberry or two. For more on Prosecco, take a look at the “Maso di Banco, Giorgio di Chirico, and Prosecco” post (December 31, 2019) on this weblog.
Of course all of these fine wines can be tasted here in the U.S., and one easy way to get started is to join a wine club. Cellars Wine Club, in fact, has a club for International Wines, see cellarswineclub.com or go to the Cellars Wine Club page on the right side of this page. There is a “No Bad Bottle” return policy, free shipping, and the opportunity to have 15% of your purchase donated to any one of the vetted charities that you choose.
Of Art and Wine affiliates with Bluehost.com and CellarsWineClub.com and may earn from qualifying purchases.
©marjorie vernelle 2020
However, it is time to leave the Veneto and the canals and intrigues of Venice to go north to Holland to look at one of its master painters, Rembrandt.
Coming Soon on Of Art and Wine: Are Rembrandt’s Self Portraits Like Fine Aged Wines?
There he sits in all his glory, showing the world who he is. This comes after the loss of his wife, of his property, and some of his reputation. Yet this painting says, “I am still Rembrandt.”
Very interesting how competitive the artists were in those times.
Yes. I have the catalog from a show at the Louvre in 2010 called Titian, Tintoretto, Vernonese, Rivalries in Venice. It reads like a novel with secret alliances (Titian and Vernonese), attacks (Tintoretto), and the occasional interference of the Inquisition. Fascinating stuff.
Thank you for the auspicious writeup. By the way, how could we communicate?
Thank you for the compliment. If you wish to reach me, my email is ofartandwine@gmail.com
You can reach me at ofartandwine@gmail.com
Wow that was strange. I just wrote an very long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Regardless, just wanted to say superb blog!
Oh, so sorry to hear that. I sometimes lose a whole paragraph on Word when I try to make a capital letter, and I have never known what I do to cause that. I thank you for your comments though, both that show and don’t show 🙁
Please let me know if you’re looking for a author for your site. You have some really great articles and I feel I would be a good asset. If you ever want to take some of the load off, I’d absolutely love to write some articles for your blog in exchange for a link back to mine. Please blast me an e-mail if interested. Cheers!
At the moment I am enjoying shaping the blog, but in future if the need arises, I will keep your contact information. Thanks for the offer.
I do not know whether it’s just me or if perhaps
everybody else encountering issues with your
website. It appears as if some of the text on your content
are running off the screen. Can somebody else please comment and let me know if this is happening to them as well?
This could be a problem with my browser because I’ve had this happen previously.
Thanks
Hello,
I am sorry that you are having this trouble; however, I have not had any other complaints about the text running off the side of the screen nor do I see that on my laptop. I checked the mobile version but there does not seem to be anything running off the side there either. I use Chrome when I work on the webpage, so perhaps if you use another browser, you might try Chrome.
Stunning quest there. What occurred after? Good luck!
I am not sure which “after” you mean, but I suggest that you take a look at some of the history of Venetian paintng post-Titian to find people like Canaletto and Francesco Guardi who did many of the famous Vedute or scenes of Venice. Hmmm, maybe I will do a piece on their painting.
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Thank you for the comments on how the page looks and thanks for the bookmark. Currently I post 3 times a month on the 10th, 20th and 30th of the month. However, I do hope to form a mailing list so I can notify people of the new posts. I just need to develop my “giveaway” before I do that.
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Thank you for your compliment on the article. Since I deal with both art (in this case Titian) and wine (Wines of the Veneto), I need clarification on which part you want more info on. I will be happy to send you some informational links to give you more detail.
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Thank you for the compliment. I post on the 10th and the 25th of the month at this point, and I have another art blog at vernellestudio.com where I profile contemporary artists, on the 15th of each month. So come back here and go there.
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