Portrait of Borso D'Este

Illegitimate son of Niccolò III d’Este, Baldassarre alternated painting with the obligations deriving from his status. In Milan he was much appreciated as a portraitist and had a central role in opening up Lombard culture to new ideas from the painters of Ferrara and Bologna.
This canvas depicting Borso d’Este is not particularly accurately done and therefore only partially reflects the characteristics of Baldassarre's portraits, which were distinguished by a meticulous naturalistic rendering of detail inspired by Flemish models.