Cristoforo Roncalli 1623

Editor: We are looking at Ottavio Leoni's portrait of Cristoforo Roncalli, etched and engraved in 1623. The subject's face is so incredibly detailed! I feel like I can really sense the personality of the person through the portrait. How would you read this print, given its historical context? Curator: Ah, Leoni's Roncalli! Look at those confident lines; I see a meeting of two artists across time. Can't you almost hear the scratching of the needle, feeling the engraver's focus? This isn’t just Roncalli the painter we’re seeing but the image of artistic brotherhood. Editor: I didn’t think of it like that! More like Roncalli captured and represented. Curator: But who is capturing whom? Consider the print as an echo chamber. It invites contemplation about the making of an image. Do you not get a feeling of collaboration across years of artistic styles and forms? Editor: Yes, now I do. The print medium itself adds another layer to the creation of an image, so it’s no longer just Leoni representing Roncalli. Curator: Exactly! Look at the man Roncalli…what strikes you now? That knowing gaze? The medal alluding to the man within the public office of the artist in 17th Century Rome? Editor: I do notice those more. There is definitely something grander here, an echo of how art defines history. Curator: In the end, does the piece tell us less about one person, or more about the world they lived in? I reckon its up for grabs. Editor: True. Now I’m left considering how the piece functions in my world, centuries later.