Alessandro Alberti with a Page
possibly 1544/1545
Painter
Painter, Venetian, 1528 - 1560
This painting’s inscription can be found in the letter resting on the table. It tells us that this man is Alessandro Alberti, and this portrait was painted in Venice when he was 30.
A member of the entourage of the personal representative of the pope in Venice, Alberti came from the same Florentine noble family as the celebrated architect and humanist Leon Battista Alberti and corresponded with Pietro Aretino, a prominent author, poet, and playwright. Here, the richly costumed Alberti is portrayed in a confident stance. The courtly aspect of the image is further emphasized by the subsidiary figure of the page, who is occupied in lacing Alberti’s breeches to his doublet.
In a 1548 letter to Alberti, Aretino mentioned that Alberti had his portrait painted by Gian Paolo Pace, who worked as a portraitist in Padua. This painting may be that portrait. The painting’s inscription likely once preserved the artist’s name and the work’s date, but that portion of the inscription has been effaced.
West Building Main Floor, Gallery 22
Artwork overview
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Medium
oil on canvas
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Credit Line
-
Dimensions
overall: 124.2 x 102.7 cm (48 7/8 x 40 7/16 in.)
framed: 163.5 x 141.9 x 8.6 cm (64 3/8 x 55 7/8 x 3 3/8 in.) -
Accession
1952.5.80
More About this Artwork
Artwork history & notes
Provenance
Marchese Torrigiani, Palazzo Torrigiani, Florence, by 1856;[1] his heirs, until 1895/1896;[2] possibly Stefano Bardini [1836-1922], Florence.[3] Alfred Beit [1853-1906], London, and Tewin Water, near Welwyn, Hertfordshire, by 1904;[4] by inheritance to his brother, Sir Otto John Beit, 1st bt. [1865-1930], London and Tewin Water;[5] by inheritance to his daughter, Mrs. Arthur Clifford Howie Bull [1899-1982, née Alice Angela Beit], Tewin Water, and Bryndewen, Gwent, Wales; (Bull sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 25 October 1946, no. 49, as by Veronese, "possibly by a painter connected with Parmigianino"); (William Sabin, London). (Count Alessandro Contini Bonacossi, Florence); sold July 1948 to the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, New York;[6] gift 1952 to NGA.
[1] Otto Mündler recorded seeing the painting in September 1856; see "The Travel Diaries of Otto Mündler 1855-1858," ed. Carol Togneri Dowd, Walpole Society 51 (1985): 131-132, 327. He described it as "A singular picture...with a letter, on which the name of Paolo Cagliari and 1557 is lisible[sic]." Mündler spelled the family name Torreggiani.
[2] Elvira Grifi, Saunterings in Florence: A New Artistic and Practical Handbook for English and American Tourists, Florence, 1896: 385, no. 12, as by Veronese.
[3] According to Everett Fahy, L'Archivio Storico Fotografico di Stefano Bardini: Dipinti, Disegni, Miniature, Stampe, Florence, 2000: 28, no. 81, Bardini acquired the painting from Torrigiani's heirs by 1895, but he provides no documentation for this date, and the introduction to the book states that the fact of Bardini owning a photographic negative did not always mean he owned the work of art.
[4] Wilhelm von Bode, The Art Collection of Mr. Alfred Beit, Berlin, 1904: 5-6, 52, as by Veronese(?).
[5] Wilhelm von Bode, Catalogue of the Collection of Pictures and Bronzes in the Collection of Mr. Otto Beit, London, 1913: 47-48, 100, questioning the validity of the signature and the subsequent attribution to Veronese.
[6] The Kress Foundation made an offer to Contini Bonacossi on 7 June 1948 for a group of twenty-eight paintings, including Lotto's "Gentleman with a Page;" the offer was accepted on 11 July 1948 (see copies of correspondence in NGA curatorial files, see also The Kress Collection Digital Archive, https://kress.nga.gov/Detail/objects/152).
Associated Names
Bibliography
1896
Grifi, Elvira. Saunterings in Florence: A New Artistic and Practical Handbook for
English and American Tourists. Florence, 1896: 385.
1904
Bode, Wilhelm von. The Art Collection of Mr. Alfred Beit. Berlin, 1904: 5-6, 52.
1913
Bode, Wilhem von. Catalogue of the Collection of Pictures and Bronzes in the Possession of Mr. Otto Beit. London, 1913: 47-48, 100.
1951
Paintings and Sculpture from the Kress Collection Acquired by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation 1945-1951. Introduction by John Walker, text by William E. Suida. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1951: 118, no. 49, repro.
1957
Bologna, Ferdinando. “Un doppio ritratto di Tiziano, inedito.” Arte Veneta 11 (1957): 70 n. 3.
Camesasca, Ettore, ed. Lettere sull’Arte di Pietro Aretino. Commentate da Fidenzio Pertile. 3 vols. Milan, 1957-1960: 3(1960):396-397.
1959
Paintings and Sculpture from the Samuel H. Kress Collection. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1959: 196, repro.
1965
Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965: 131.
1968
National Gallery of Art. European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations. Washington, 1968: 118, repro.
1969
Pallucchini, Rodolfo. Tiziano. 2 vols. Florence, 1969: 1:221, 223.
1972
Fredericksen, Burton B., and Federico Zeri. Census of Pre-Nineteenth Century Italian Paintings in North American Public Collections. Cambridge, Mass., 1972: 152, 509, 647.
1973
Shapley, Fern Rusk. Paintings from the Samuel H. Kress Collection: Italian Schools, XVI-XVIII Century. London, 1973: 26-27, fig. 50.
1975
European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 348, repro.
Ciardi Duprè, Maria Grazia. “Gian Paolo Lolmo.” In I Pittori Bergamaschi. Il Cinquecento, vol. 4. Bergamo, 1975: 34.
1979
Shapley, Fern Rusk. Catalogue of the Italian Paintings. 2 vols. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1979: 1:355-357; 2:pl. 257, as Parmese School.
1984
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 223, no. 279, color repro.
1985
European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 400, repro.
Mündler, Otto. "The Travel Diaries of Otto Mündler." Ed. Carol Togneri Dowd. Walpole Society 51 (1985): 131-132, 327.
2000
Fahy, Everett. Dipinti, disegni, miniature, stampe: L'Archivio storico fotografico di Stefano Bardini. Florence, 2000: 28-29, no. 81, as by Gian Paolo Pace.
2006
Dal Pozzolo, Enrico Maria. “La ‘bottega’ di Tiziano: sistema solare e buco nero.” Studi Tizianeschi 4 (2006): 80-81.
2009
Tagliaferro, Giorgio, and Bernard Aikema, with Matteo Mancini and Andrew John. Le botteghe di Tiziano. Florence, 2009: 346.
2012
Biffis, Mattia. “Di Zuan Paolo Pace, chierico e laico.” Studi Tizianeschi 7 (2012): 57-64.
Zavatta, Giulio. “Alfonso Gonzaga di Novellara committente di Giovanni Paolo Pace, e il tentative di acquisto di un dipinto di Tiziano tramite il miniature Antonio Bernieri da Correggio.” Studi Tizianeschi 8 (2012): 100.
2018
Moskowitz, Anita F. "The Photographic Archive of Stefano Bardini: A Few Case Studies of Its Utility." Source: Notes in the History of Art 37, no. 4 (Summer 2018): 239-240, 239 fig. 1a, 244 n. 6.
Inscriptions
center left on folded paper: Alessandro Alberti l'anno XXX / della sua eta ... / s [or l] ritrasse nel 15 ... / In Venetia. (Alessandro Alberti the thirtieth year of his age...portrayed in 15...In Venice)
Wikidata ID
Q20175814