Portrait of Titian
Medium
Engraving on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
Image/sheet, cut within platemark: 32.3 × 23.4 cm (12 3/4 × 9 1/4 in.)
Classification
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
28199
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Although an optical illusion makes Titian’s bust portrait seem to change size, the two impressions of Agostino Carracci’s Portrait of Titian (1938.1432 and 1919.2562) represent two subsequent states printed from the same reworked copper plate. The background lines at the top of the plate were burnished down to accommodate additional text celebrating Titian’s fame. This sheet has also been repaired in several places, with some of the details and lettering redrawn by hand, making the two prints se...
About the Artist
Agostino Carracci · 1557–1602
Agostino left his profession as a tailor to become an artist. His earliest works were engravings, which was an extremely profitable practice and he was famed for having attained new heights of perfection. He was also a skilled painter and collaborated with his famous relations on various commisions. Comment on works: Religious; Portraits.