Description
A drawing of a male figure in fantastic dress. The figure is shown full length and from behind. His right arm is extended and holds a sphere. Five other sphere are to be found throughout his costume - one at his head, and two at the chest and knees. These spheres must allude to the arms of the Medici family, who acted as patrons to Stefano at various stages of his career. Like Leonardo da Vinci, Stefano della Bella provided many designs for costumes, festivals, theatrical performances and triumphal entries throughout his career. The six spheres that make up the costume studied here (in the hand and on the head, chest and knees) must allude to the arms of the Medici, presumably dating the drawing to one of Stefano's periods of activity in Florence. He was resident there from childhood until 1633, when he left for Rome, returning occasionally to Florence, and after a decade in Paris from 1639 he returned to his home city in 1650, working under the sporadic patronage of Ferdinando II de' Medici and serving as drawing master to the future Cosimo III. The style of the drawing suggests that it dates from the period after 1650. In June 1661, Prince Cosimo married Marguerite-Louise d'Orléans (first cousin of Louis XIV) in Florence; Stefano made etchings of the elaborate celebrations, and he probably also had a hand in organising some aspects of the festivities. It is possible that the costume was designed for that event, but masques and balls were a staple of court life and without further evidence this cannot be confirmed. Catalogue entry from Royal Treasures, A Golden Jubilee Celebration, London 2002
Descriptive Medium: 'Black chalk, pen and ink, grey wash, and touches of watercolour', 'black chalk, pen and ink, grey wash, watercolour'
Image Licence
All Rights Reserved
Image Credit
© Royal Collection Trust
Location
Florence, Tuscany, Italy
Country
Italy
Tags
Category
People & Society
