Portrait of a Youth

A young man models beside an imposing mantelpiece in a room sumptuously decorated with heavy curtains and an icon of the Virgin. Seated on a luxurious oriental carpet, he appears brash or even cocky. His eyes have the look of someone who expects to be looked at. The boyish face and self-assured pose complete one of the most nonchalant and modern portraits in sixteenth-century art.

Rosso Fiorentino was a particularly recalcitrant member of the generation of artists born after Raphael who broke with the older master’s tastefulness. The Capodimonte portrait is noticeably unfinished, reveling fluid brushstrokes, especially for the hands. While executing the painting in Arezzo,1529, Rosso provoked a violent fight during mass and was forced to flee. The following year he was working for the king of France at Fontainebleau.