Clemente Albèri (Bologna, 1803 - 1864)
Portrait of Pope Pius VIII, 1829/1830
oil on canvas; inv. P 24
provenance: Bequest of Agostino Sieri Pepoli, 1910
The writing on the piece of paper the Pope is holding, tells the viewer
that this portrait was painted by Clemente Albèri while
“Pope Pius VIII was happily reigning.” It can
therefore be dated to sometime between 31st March 1829 and 30th
November 1830, during his short pontificate.
Although Alberi was still young, he had already become renowned as a
skillful portrait painter.
In this early example of his portrait painting, he tends to focus more
on the rendering of the outward appearance than on the character of the
sitter.
