Description
Paolo Veronese’s Portrait of Agostino Barbarigo presents an older, bearded man in gleaming armor. His substantial figure occupies the foreground, framed by a red curtain at one side and a cooler background at the other. The contrast between reflective metal, fabric and flesh gives the portrait a strong material presence, while the sitter’s steady bearing holds the varied surfaces together.
Painted after about 1571 in oil on canvas, the portrait commemorates the Venetian commander Agostino Barbarigo, who died following the Battle of Lepanto. The Cleveland Museum of Art identifies the work as a posthumous image and connects the arrow he holds with his fatal wound. Veronese combines the public language of military status with an individualized face, making remembrance and personal identity equally important to the picture.
Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the Paolo Veronese collection.
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