Portret van Gattamelata 1549 - 1575

Editor: This is "Portret van Gattamelata," a print from somewhere between 1549 and 1575, by an anonymous artist. The figure stares directly out, and something about the formality and precision of the lines almost feels…stiff, like an official document. What do you make of this Renaissance portrait? Curator: Stiff is a good word! Though, I wouldn't immediately use it negatively. It does have the character of a woodcut, which always brings a particular crispness, don't you think? There's something resolute about it. Makes you wonder, what stories does *he* have, staring out at *us* centuries later? Perhaps that very distance, that time-traveling gaze, adds to that formality? Editor: That’s interesting. The time element. It does feel like he’s been looking for a very long time. Does the crispness contribute to the way he's been immortalized? Curator: I think so. Imagine the artist carefully etching each line, deliberately deciding what to show and what to conceal. This wasn't a quick snapshot; it was a deliberate act of memorialization. Do you notice the lines framing his face, almost like the curves of the page have wrapped him? That lends him such strength. Editor: Yes, like he’s contained but not trapped. And is that, “Gattamelata” inscribed in the lower corner? Is that who he is? Curator: It is! Erasmo of Narni, nicknamed Gattamelata, a condottiero, an Italian mercenary general. I wonder what he’d think of his portrait now? Editor: Wow, a mercenary. Looking at the lines, they’ve immortalized him, ready to engage forever. It's great how a closer look changes the impression. Curator: Indeed! That's the fun, isn't it? Digging a little deeper, we’ve met a mysterious, faraway general.