Rona Goffen, Titian

According to Goffen, Titian was the first international artist. He started in Venice as a teenager under Giovanni Bellini doing commissioned work. He eventually moved up to international commissions and even had a "fan" who would buy his work just because he painted it. Most artists didn't have that luxury during this period. He was famous for painting intriguing female nudes. What I thought was interesting was all through this class we've learned about multiple artists but most focused on the male form and if they did paint women, they were more angelic and definitely not nude. He was totally different than what the people of that time had seen before. There was some artists by his time that were painting women but none with the intriguing personalities that Titian's paintings had. There was something behind the women's eyes. Looking at the paintings you want to know more. He placed them in intimate places like the bedroom and put them in positions that were more free and expressive for women. Goffen mentioned how women were portrayed as the fault for the fall of humanity and that's how they were shown in paintings. Titian made women more than that. They became interesting to paint and to think on. They were shown nude but not overly sexual; with some modesty but free. I really like that fact the he was so different he wasn't afraid to challenge the norm.

Sala dei Cavalli or the Room of Horses

The Room of Horses was made to pay respect to horses. The ruler of Mantua who commissioned the palazzo, Federigo Gonzaga, had six horses that he used for sport as well as conveying his excellence. Romano made sculptures of life size horses in a very realistic manner with his frescoes around it. Each of the ruler's horses was represented. There is one horse that is different than the rest. Instead of being lean and poised, he is larger than the rest and unnamed. This horse was used in battle so he had to be built to carry a man in full armor instead of a lean suite used for sporting.


Dixon, Andrew G. "Archives: ITP 77: The Room of the Horses at the Palazzo Te, by Giulio Romano." Archives: ITP 77: The Room of the Horses at the Palazzo Te, by Giulio Romano. Sunday Telegraph "In the Picture", 10 July 2001. Web. 07 Nov. 2013.