A Nun
Artist/Maker
DatesMade: Executed probably 1600-talet
Material / Technique
Dimensionsh x w: Mått 110 x 87 cm h x w x d: Ram 137 x 114 x 10 cm
Inventory numberNM 413
AcqusitionTransferred 1866 from Kongl. Museum
Other titlesTitel (sv): Nunna Titel (en): A Nun Titel (en): Portrait of a Nun of the Order of the Holy Annunciation
DescriptionRes. Katalogtext: Description in Italian Paintings: Three Centuries of Collecting, Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, 2015, cat.no. 95: FORMER INV. NOS.: 374 (M. 1804); KM 493. TECHNICAL NOTES: The support is a coarse, plain-weave linen fabric. The ground is red. It is glue-lined (probably in the 19th century) and mounted on a non-original stretcher. The paint layers are slightly abraded (overcleaning), and impastos are flattened due to the lining. The tacking edges are cropped. UV fluorescence and raking light reveal that at some point the painting was probably shown as a smaller work. The lower and lateral parts show signs of having been folded. When the painting was lined, the “original” dimensions were restored. Documented restorations: Conservation in 2012: Removal of yellow varnish and discoloured retouches. Retouching. New varnish. PROVENANCE: Martelli 1804. BIBLIOGRAPHY: NM Cat. 1867, p. 29 (as van Dyck); Sander 1872– 76, p. 128, no. 374; NM Cat. 1958, p. 240 (as anonymous, 17th century); NM Cat. 1990, p. 439 (as anonymous, 17th century). The 18th-century attribution assigned this painting to Anthony van Dyck (1599–1641). Many stylistic features of the portrait may indeed recall the Italian legacy of this Flemish artist, but the attribution is not sustainable today. The specific technical qualities of the portrait and the direct setting, with the sitter placed en face, suggest Francesco Trevisani as its author.¹ The painting bears strong similarities to Trevisani’s portraits of Sir Edward Gascoigne (Leeds, City Art Galleries, Lotherton Hall), painted in the early 1720s, and Jan Jachym, Count of Pachta (Prague, National Gallery), dated to 1696.² The Gascoigne portrait shares with the Nationalmuseum painting the delicate mouth, straight nose, strongly curved eyebrows and a particular emphasis on the eyes through the straightforward en face position. The sitters’ hands, always a prominent feature in Trevisani’s portraits, show strong formal similarities, with the rather narrow upper parts contrasting with heavier, curved fingers. Trevisani’s biographer Nicola Pio stressed the painter’s abilities as a portraitist by pointing out his eagerness for fine accessories and his ambitious approach to realistic and lively representations. ³ One of the pioneers of the Roman Grand Tour portrait, he worked extensively for the Stuart Court, where he was rivalled by Antonio David, also represented in the Martelli Collection (NM 165, cat. no. 49). The present portrait is rather unique within the subgenre of elite nun portraiture in Rome, and challenges the famous formula invented by Ferdinand Voet (1639–1689) in his portraits of the young nuns of the Chigi family.⁴ The threequarter- length scale, the gilded armchair and the seated position of the model suggest that the young nun occupied an important position within her convent and probably belonged to the aristocracy. The youth of the sitter is particularly striking and sheds light on the conditions of female religious careers, which often began when a girl was brought to a convent to be properly educated.⁵ The sitter of this portrait wears a dark veil, underlining that she is no longer a novice but a professed nun. It is likely that the portrait was commissioned with reference to this status. The partly deep blue colour of the habit, recently brought to light in the section around the right hand, suggests that the sitter belonged to the Order of the Holy Annunciation – also known as “le Turchine” (the Blue Nuns). The order’s habit is generally known for its deep blue cloak worn over a white dress. During the first years of its establishment, the nuns chose, for hygienic reasons, to keep the habit completely blue, accompanied by a black veil.⁶ This explains the slightly unorthodox representation of the habit in the Nationalmuseum painting. The order, regulated by the Augustinian rule, was founded in Genoa in 1604. Known for its particularly severe enclosure, the order was dedicated to contemplation of the Annunciation, the Nativity and the Incarnation, as well as to prayer for lost souls. Although it had spread rapidly in northern Italy, France, Flanders and Germany, it lacked a convent in Rome. Eventually, one was established in 1675 by the noblewoman Camilla Orsini Borghese, and the architect Carlo Rainaldi (1611–1691) became responsible for its construction on the Esquiline Hill.⁷ It is impossible at this stage of research to advance any suggestions as to the sitter’s identity. The identification of the order to which she belonged is an important clue that may in time resolve the question. Trevisani’s first important Roman benefactor, Cardinal Flavio Chigi (1631–1693), had ten nieces who entered convents in Rome and Siena.⁸ However, they belonged to the orders of Dominicans and the Poor Claves, which rules out any possible connection between them and the Nationalmuseum portrait. DiFederico’s mention of Trevisani as a portrait painter to the Prince and Princess Borghese and all their children offers another interesting line of inquiry. ⁹ Prince Marcantonio III (1660–1729) and his consort Flaminia Spinola had two daughters who entered a Roman convent in 1714, a period in which Trevisani was rising on the Roman artistic scene. Like the Chigi nuns, the Borghese ladies opted for the Dominican rule, a fact that again excludes any connection with the unknown sitter of the present portrait. The painting’s elegant mixture of religious gravitas and elite sociability shows to full effect Trevisani’s original and independent approach to portraiture. The rather dark palette, recalling his Venetian training, suggests a date around 1695. sne 1 I am very grateful to Karin Wolfe for confirming this attribution. 2 DiFederico 1977, cat. nos. P10 and P4. 3 Enggass and Enggass 1977, pp. 37–38. 4 Petrucci 2005, pp. 176–178, cat. nos. 93, 94a and 96a. 5 Norlander Eliasson 2010a, pp. 137–148. 6 Rocca 2000, pp. 486–487. 7 Dunn 1997, pp. 176–179. 8 Eszer 1979, pp. 171–196. 9 DiFederico 1977, p. 21. [End]
Motif categoryPortrait
Collection
TechniquePainting
Object category
Keyword