Room 56

A portrait in profile can make a person look as fixed as a figure on a medal. Elsewhere, a group of musicians invites a more open reading of the people and their relationships. The paintings here were made for courts that valued learning, discussion and the study of ancient culture. Artists worked alongside poets and scholars, while their patrons used portraits in family affairs and diplomatic exchanges. Mantua, Ferrara, Milan and Bologna supported distinct workshops whose ideas also travelled between cities. Compare a strongly outlined figure with one whose modelling is softer. Leonardo’s years in Milan helped spread new approaches to faces, hair and the gradual transition from light to shadow.