Pictures Every Child Should Know: A Selection of the World's Art Masterpieces for Young PeopleBacon, Mary Schell Hoke
General
Pictures Every Child Should Know: A Selection of the World's Art Masterpieces for Young People
Bacon, Mary Schell Hoke
Art -- Juvenile literature; Painters -- Juvenile literature; Painting -- Juvenile literature
Titian was now getting to be old, but he was yet to do great work and
to have kingly patrons. Charles V. visited Bologna, and, seeing
Titian's great work, wanted him to paint his portrait. So the artist
went to Bologna and painted the portrait of the king, clothed in
armour, but without any head-covering, making Charles V. look so fine
a personage, that he was delighted. Charles said he had always been
painted to look so much uglier than he really was that when people who
had seen his portraits, actually saw himself they were pleasantly
disappointed. While Titian was painting his picture, Lombardi, the
sculptor, wished above all things to see Charles, so Titian said: "You
come with me to the sittings, and act as if you were some apprentice,
carrying my colours and brushes, and then you can watch the king as
easily as possible." Lombardi did as Titian suggested, but he hid in
his big and baggy sleeve a tablet of wax, on which to make a relief
picture of Charles. One day the king surprised the sculptor and
demanded to be shown what he was doing. Thereupon he was so much
pleased that he commissioned Lombardi to make the model in
marble. While the king was sitting for two portraits to Titian, the
artist one day dropped his brush. The king looked at the courtiers who
were lounging about watching the work, but none of them picked it up,
so the king himself did so. Titian was distressed over this and
apologised to the king. "There may be many kings," said Charles, "but
there will never be more than one Titian--and he deserves to be served
by Caesar himself." After that he would allow no other artist to paint
his portrait, declaring that Titian alone could do it properly, and
for the two pictures Titian received two thousand scudi in gold, was
made a Count of the Lateran Palace, of the Aulic Council and of the
Consistory; with the title of Count Palatine and all the advantages
attached to those dignities. His children were thereby raised to the
rank of nobles of the empire, with all the honours appertaining to
families with four generations of ancestors. He was also made Knight
of the Golden Spur, with the right of entrance to court. This was
great return for two portraits of a king, but it shows what a king
could do if he chose.
Titian had a brother who also became an artist, less famous than
himself, and it was that brother, who, when their father died in the
Cadore home, went back to care for the old place and to keep it in
readiness so that the famous Titian might return to it for rest and
peace. Foreign sovereigns had invited Titian to end his days with
them, but they could not tempt him from that vale of Cadore nor his
country home in Venice.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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