Girolamo da CARPI (Ferrara, 1501 - 1556) Portrait of a Man in a Black Hat and Gloves Poplar panel, one board, reinforced A red wax stamp on the back No frame Portrait of a gent wearing a black hat and gloves, poplar panel, by G. da Carpi 23.23 x 16.54 in. 59.0 x 42.0 cm Provenance: Charles Marcotte d'Argenteuil (1773-1864) Collection, Château du Poncelet, near Meaux, until 1995; Then by descent; Private collection, Charente Girolamo da Carpi's career was entirely linked to his birthplace. He trained in Ferrara in Garofalo's studio, and after Dosso Dossi's death was appointed first court painter to Duke Hercules II d'Este (1508-1559). At the same time, he assimilated the latest innovations of the masters of the High Renaissance, which he observed and then synthesised during his travels. In Florence in 1534-1535, he discovered Pontormo and Bronzino, then spent two periods in Rome, one in 1525 and the other between 1549 and 1553, during which he copied Raphael and Sebastiano del Piombo. In his own region, he had privileged access to the works of Correggio and Parmigiani in Parma and Bologna, and thanks to his friendship with the Aretinus, a poet at the court of Ferrara, he was also familiar with Titian's portraits. Our painting reveals the incredible creative emulation of these great examples who, like him, were both history painters and portraitists. Girolamo da Carpi retains the monumentality and the natural relationship with the model that have become established since Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael (consider, for example, his portrait of Bindo Altoviti (1491-1557) in the National Gallery of Art in Washington). Our work displays an idealisation inspired by Florentines such as Francesco Salviati1 and Jacopino del Conte, and an elegance and sophistication akin to Parmesan effigies. A comparative study of male portraits by these painters would allow us to follow the evolution of the fashion for men's headgear, which they liked to depict; ours is indeed the flat-bottomed toque in vogue in the 1540s2. The plain green-grey background matches the model's eye colour. Our panel can be compared with the finest portraits by Girolamo da Carpi. These include the Young Man Writing (c. 1526-1527, private collection), the Portrait of Girolamo de Vincetti (1533-1535, Naples, National Gallery of Capodimonte), the Gentleman with a Clepsydra (1529, private collection) and the Gentleman with a Fur Collar (c. 1545-1550, Seattle Art Museum). The way the hands are treated and used, one under the other, is identical. In our panel, they sketch an elegant movement in which the index finger of the right hand slips into the garment, hiding part of the necklace chain and revealing the pendant. The left is clutching a pair of gloves. Her social position is indicated by the finely described rings, while the white sleeves of the shirt slip out, pleated in a cascade, giving a touch of naturalness. Not surprisingly, this painting appealed to Charles Marcotte d'Argenteuil (1773 -1864), a close friend of Jean-Dominique Ingres 3, whom he had met in Rome in 1810. The two men shared a taste for the aristocratic portraits of Italian Mannerism, which often served as inspiration for the painter from Montauban. 1- Painted on marble, the Portrait of an Elderly Bindo Altoviti, sold as a Girolamo da Carpi (Sotheby's, London, 3 December 2008, no. 35) has since been returned to Francesco Salviati, and entered the Metropolitan Museum in New York last year. 2- It has no rolled-up edges over the ears, as was the case at the beginning of the century. 3- Ingres painted the portrait of his friend Charles Marcotte in a style reminiscent of the great portraitists of the Renaissance (Oil on canvas, 93 x 69 cm, National Gallery of Art, Washington). Girolamo da CARPI (Ferrara, 1501 - 1556) 59.0 x 42.0 cm Girolamo da Carpi's career is entirely linked to his birthplace. He trained in Ferrara in Garofalo's studio, and after Dosso Dossi's death was appointed first court painter to Duke Hercules II d'Este (1508-1559). At the same time, he assimilated the latest innovations of the masters of the High Renaissance, which he observed and then synthesised during his travels. In Florence in 1534-1535, he discovered Pontormo and Bronzino, then spent two periods in Rome, one in 1525 and the other between 1549 and 1553, during which he copied Raphael and Sebastiano del Piombo. In his own region, he had privileged access to the works of Correggio and Parmigiani in Parma and Bologna, and thanks to his friendship with the Aretinus, a poet at the court of Ferrara, he was also familiar with the portraits of Titian. Our painting reveals the incredible creative emulation of these great examples who, like him, were both history painters and portraitists. Girolamo da Carpi retains the monumentality and the natural relationship with the model that have become established since Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael (consider, for example, his portrait of Bindo Altoviti (1491-1557) in the National Gallery of Art in Washington). Our work displays an idealisation inspired by Florentines such as Francesco Salviati1 and Jacopino del Conte, and an elegance and sophistication akin to Parmesan effigies. A comparative study of male portraits by these painters would allow us to follow the evolution of the fashion for men's headgear, which they liked to depict; ours is indeed the flat-bottomed toque in vogue in the 1540s2. The plain green-grey background matches the model's eye colour. Our panel can be compared with the finest portraits by Girolamo da Carpi. These include the Young Man Writing (c. 1526-1527, private collection), the Portrait of Girolamo de Vincetti (1533-1535, Naples, National Gallery of Capodimonte), the Gentleman with a Clepsydra (1529, private collection) and the Gentleman with a Fur Collar (c. 1545-1550, Seattle Art Museum). The way the hands are treated and used, one under the other, is identical. In our panel, they sketch an elegant movement in which the index finger of the right hand slips into the garment, hiding part of the necklace chain and revealing the pendant. The left is clutching a pair of gloves. Her social position is indicated by the finely described rings, while the white sleeves of the shirt slip out, pleated in a cascade, giving a touch of naturalness. Not surprisingly, this painting appealed to Charles Marcotte d'Argenteuil (1773 -1864), a close friend of Jean-Dominique Ingres 3, whom he had met in Rome in 1810. The two men shared a taste for the aristocratic portraits of Italian Mannerism, which often served as inspiration for the painter from Montauban. 1- Painted on marble, the Portrait of an Elderly Bindo Altoviti, sold as a Girolamo da Carpi (Sotheby's, London, 3 December 2008, no. 35) has since been returned to Francesco Salviati, and entered the Metropolitan Museum in New York last year. 2- It has no rolled-up edges over the ears, as was the case at the beginning of the century. 3- Ingres painted the portrait of his friend Charles Marcotte in a style reminiscent of the great portraitists of the Renaissance (Oil on canvas, 93 x 69 cm, National Gallery of Art, Washington).