Portrait of a Young Man
Medium
Tempera on wood
Dimensions
Overall 11 1/8 x 7 3/4 in. (28.3 x 19.7 cm); painted surface 10 3/4 x 5 1/2 in. (27.3 x 14 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Department
European Paintings
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913
Accession Number
14.40.649
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the refined world of 15th-century Ferrara with *Portrait of a Young Man a gem painted by Cosmè Tura (also known as Cosimo di di Bonaventura) the 1470s. This intimate tempera-on-wood panel, measuring just 11 1/8 x 7 3/4 inches, captures the subject in sharp profile against a neutral background, emphasizing his delicate features and youthful poise. Tempera, an egg-based medium favored in the early Renaissance, allowed Tura to achieve luminous, jewel-like colors and meticulous detail, evoking the precision of enamelwork. Tura, a leading artist of the Ferrarese school, worked under the ...