Ritratto di Alessandro de' Medici

Author: Giorgio Vasari
Date: 1534-1537
Title: Portrait of Alessandro de Medici
Location: Uffizi Gallery, Florence
Technique: oil on canvas
Dimensions: 157 x 114 cm

The portrait was commissioned by Ottaviano de 'Medici, in the center there is the duke in his castle, in profile, looking to the right at his Florence (focal point of the perspective of the picture) wearing his Renaissance armor which makes a great effect of lights, shadows and reflections (due to the light itself coming from the left). He is seated on a chair of the time, adorned with many decorations, to which his red cloak is placed and on the left his helmet and an olive tree. The whole context is immersed in a gloomy environment with dark colors. The young duke is shown full-length. The shining armor with which it is covered is the mirror of its qualities, while the red cloak lying on the seat symbolizes the blood of defeated enemies. The round stool indicates that his reign will never end as his opponents, represented by the herms carved on his legs, have been subjugated forever. In the background the city of Florence in flames recalls the siege of 1530, while the laurel branch that is vigorously reborn from the cut trunk, recalling the Portrait of Cosimo the Elder by Pontormo, symbolizes the Medici dynasty which returned to stronger power after the exile.

Author: Pontormo
Date: around 1537
Title: Portrait of Anna de Medici with Giulia de Medici
Location: Walters Art Museum, Baltimore
Technique: oil on panel
Dimensions: 88.0 x 71.3 cm

The little girl holding her hand is probably Giulia, a relative of the Medici who was left in the care of Maria after the murder of her father, Duke Alessandro de'Medici (1511-1537). The child was painted during the 19th century but was rediscovered during a cleanup of the 1937 opera. Although Maria still wears the mourning robes for her deceased husband, Pontormo's elegant style conveys her aristocratic grace through her fingers incredibly long and her trendy pale color, which she shares with Giulia. The background is dark and the light seems to come from an upper right corner, but it illuminates the figures from the front.