Academic Study Inspired By Raphael’s Portrait Of Bindo Altoviti, Tuscan School, 38 × 52 Cm

Academic Study Inspired by Raphael’s Portrait of Bindo Altoviti, Tuscan School, 38 × 52 cm

Mid-19th century

Charcoal on paper

Academic study based on Raphael’s Portrait of Bindo Altoviti, painted around 1515 for the young Florentine banker Bindo Altoviti (1491–1557). Celebrated for his elegance, wealth, and refined humanist culture, Altoviti belonged to a powerful merchant family and was an important Florentine “fuoriuscito” active in Rome. Several leading artists portrayed him over the course of his life.

Raphael’s original painting remained in Italy for centuries in the Altoviti family collection. It left the country during the 19th century, circulated on the international art market, and ultimately entered an American collection in 1942. It is now housed at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

This 19th-century drawing follows the structure of Raphael’s portrait: the slight turn of the head, the idealised features, and the gentle handling of light and shadow. The treatment of the hair, the calm expression, and the gesture of the hand resting on the drapery reflect the academic approach taught in Tuscan drawing schools, where copying Renaissance masters was an essential component of training.

From one of two portfolios of studies discovered in an old Tuscan property, containing exercises and copies produced between the 18th century and the first quarter of the 20th century.

Paper with a fine surface and light traces of studio use.