Renaissance Faces
Van Eyck to Titian
This lavishly illustrated book explores the development of portrait painting in Northern and Southern Europe during the Renaissance, when the genre first flourished. While both regions developed distinct styles and techniques, each was also influenced by the other. Four renowned scholars consider the relationship between artists of the north and south to illuminate the notion of likeness. The authors offer new research on some of the greatest portraitists of the period, including Giovanni Bellini, Sandro Botticelli, Lucas Cranach, Albrecht Durer, Jan van Eyck, Hans Holbein, and Titian. This book is rich in information about portrait types, styles, techniques, iconographies, the function of portraits, and the connections among painting, sculpture, and portrait medals. Furthermore, the volume features fascinating accounts of the relationships of patrons, artists, and sitters, as well as the process of making portraits. The authors also investigate complex notions of beauty, spiritual belief, and the portrait as a mirror of the soul.
About the Author
Lorne Campbell is Beaumont Senior Research Curator and Luke Syson is Curator of Italian Paintings 1460-1500 at the National Gallery, London.
Miguel Falomir is Head Curator of Italian Renaissance Painting at the Museo Nacional del Prado.
Jennifer Fletcher was formerly Senior Lecturer at the Courtauld Institute.
Reviews
"In this lovely book, you find portraits of money lenders, artists, collectors of rare and beautiful objects, courtiers, grandees, marriageable young women and people in their old age... So many of the faces these faces are haunting in their seriousness and sense of life. These are images you take away in your mind long after the book is back on the shelf" – Richard Edmonds, Birmingham Post
