Portrait of Doge Leonardo Loredan
The Portrait of Doge Leonardo Loredan is a painting by Italian Renaissance master Giovanni Bellini, dating from. It portrays Leonardo Loredan, the Doge of Venice from 1501 to 1521, in his ceremonial garments with the corno ducale worn over a linen cap, and is signed on a cartellino. It is on display in the National Gallery in London.
Description
This formal portrait depicts Leonardo Loredan in his official state robes as Doge of Venice, with its ornate buttons. The distinctively shaped hat is derived from the hood of a doublet. As with other traditional portraits of the Doge, the composition resembles a Roman sculpted portrait bust. The painting is signed – the Latin form of Giovanni Bellini – on a cartellino attached to a parapet at the base of the composition.John Pope-Hennessy described Bellini as "by far the greatest fifteenth-century official portraitist", adding that "the tendency towards ideality that impairs his private portraits here stood him in good stead, and enabled him to codify, with unwavering conviction, the official personality".