Female portrait

The dark background, the rotation of the bust and the imperceptible smile make this painting one of the best interpretations of Leonardo’s portraiture, reinterpreted in the light of the classicism of the early sixteenth century. In this female portrait, there is a clever blend of references to the portraiture models of Antonello da Messina and Perugino and to the innovations of Leonardo da Vinci's painting, recognisable in the play of wide, ample volumes and in the construction of the figure using combinations of intense and bright chromatic zones.