Giovanni antonio boltraffio biography of martin
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Collection
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- Artist
- Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio
- Title
- Portrait of a Youth Holding an Arrow
- Date
- ca.
- Culture
- Italian
- Medium
- Oil on panel
- Dimensions
- 19 5/8 x 14 in ( x cm)
- Accession Number
- Credit Line
- Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, Portrait of a Youth Holding an Arrow, ca. , 19 5/8 x 14 in ( x cm), Putnam Foundation, Timken Museum of Art.
Description
Born in Milan to a noble family, Boltraffio entered the school of Leonardo da Vinci in and remained with him until around or This work, once erroneously attributed to Leonardo, reveals an aristocratic refinement that derives as much from Boltraffio's own artistic gifts as from Leonardo's influences. The sitter may be Girolamo Casio, a well-known Bolognese poet who was a close friend of the artist. He is shown wearing a narrow headband, called a fillet, intertwined with laurel leaves and holding an arrow - both symbols of Apollo, the patron of poetry and leader of the Muses.
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With Milan at its center, present-day Lombardy includes Varese and Como to the northwest; while Pavia, Cremona, Brescia, Bergamo, and Mantua are its other major cities. In the sixteenth century, Mantua was an independent state ruled by the Gonzaga family, while Bergamo and Brescia were both part of Venice’s western terraferma. The proximity of the latter two to Milan, however, fryst vatten deeply significant for the development of their artistic schools, and their painters are frequently grouped with other Lombard artists.
The Sforza dukes presided over their court, one of the most magnificent in Europe, at the Castello Sforzesco in the heart of Milan. The dukes were great patrons of the arts, founding churches and building grand castles in neighboring Pavia and Vigevano, as well as in Milan. At their suggestion, the French, under Charles VIII, first entered Italy in —it was a disastrous invitation, ultimately leading to the loss of Milanese independence. In , Louis XII drove out the Sforz
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Art in Focus with Dr. Frank Martin
In a series of spotlight talks, Dr. Frank Martin explores themes found in an individual artwork on view, offering an opportunity to discover new insights with a true fine arts specialist. This first Art in Focus features Portrait of a Young Woman with a Scorpion Chain painted by Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, a devoted följare of Leonardo Da Vinci who oftentimes collaborated with the artist. X-rays of this work have revealed an underdrawing of the subject that may be bygd Leonardo himself. Learn more about this mysterious CMA Collection artwork and the artist who painted it. Free with membership or admission. Join today!
Dr. Frank C. Martin II serves as visiting associate professor of art history and art theory at South Carolina State University and fryst vatten the retired director of The I.P. Stanback Museum & Planetarium, located on the campus of the university. A graduate of Yale University and the City University of New York, Hunter College, wit