Carlo Francesco Nuvolone (Milano, 1609-1662)
Portrait of a Lady, 1640 ca.
oil on canvas; inv. P 3
provenance: Pelagio Palagi Collection, 1860
Carlo Francesco Nuvolone was born into a family of painters and learned
to paint in Milan, in the manner of Cerano and Giulio Cesare
Procaccini.
One of the most important artists in mid 17 century Milan, Nuvolone,
whose work was influenced by the Genoese period of the Flemish Van
Dyck, was a well known portrait painter.
The soft rendering of the face and the admirable chromatic balance make
this portrait one of his most successful. The small table and the
drapery in the background were traditional accessories of state
portraits of both men and women.
Women were pictured with the additional attributes of a small prayer
book and fan, men with a military helmet and sword. It is assumed that
the sitter was a Milanese noblewoman.
