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Portrait of Michelangelo

Baccio Bandinelli (attributed), 16th century

This 16th-century Portrait of Michelangelo, attributed to the Florentine sculptor Baccio Bandinelli, belongs to the Department of Paintings of the Louvre in Paris. It is a compact work, 49 cm high and 36.4 cm wide. Its listed location is Louvre Museum storage, so check before you plan a visit around it.

Where to see it

The painting is held by the Louvre Museum in Paris, in the collection of the Department of Paintings. Its recorded location is Louvre Museum storage, which means it may not be on public view. Before visiting, check the Louvre's official website, including its online collections database, for the work's current display status. If it is not shown in the galleries, contact the museum directly to ask about access or future display.

What to look for in person

A portrait across a famous rivalry

The attribution is what makes this picture intriguing. Baccio Bandinelli was a Florentine sculptor of the generation after Michelangelo and is widely remembered as one of his rivals. In Florence, Bandinelli's marble Hercules and Cacus stands in Piazza della Signoria near the place where Michelangelo's David originally stood. A likeness of Michelangelo linked to Bandinelli invites you to think about how artists of that era observed, competed with and recorded one another. Keep in mind that the attribution is not certain.

An intimate scale

At 49 by 36.4 centimetres, this is a modest, close-range picture rather than a grand display piece. If you get the chance to see it, stand near enough to view it as you would a personal likeness. Notice how the artist concentrates attention on the sitter's face and expression within a limited space. The small format suits private study or keeping a record of a person's appearance. It is very different in purpose from the monumental sculpture and frescoes associated with both artists.

Looking with a sculptor's eye

Bandinelli worked mainly as a sculptor, and he was also active as a draughtsman. When you look at a portrait attributed to him, it is worth asking how a sculptor thinks about a head. Look for how the features are built up through light and shadow, and how the forms of brow, nose and cheek are modelled. Compare it in your mind with portraits of Michelangelo by other hands. Many likenesses of him were made in the 16th century, and they vary in how they present him.

About the painting

Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564), sculptor, painter and architect, was one of the most frequently portrayed artists of the Italian Renaissance. Many images of him circulated during and after his lifetime, and the Louvre's Portrait of Michelangelo belongs to that wider picture. The museum's records date it to the 16th century and attribute it to Baccio Bandinelli (1493-1560). The word 'attributed' matters here. It means the link to Bandinelli rests on judgement rather than on a signature or firm documentation, and specialists may weigh the evidence differently.

Bandinelli was a Florentine sculptor who received important commissions from the Medici. In accounts of Florentine art, he is often cast as Michelangelo's competitor. That reputation owes much to Giorgio Vasari's Lives of the Artists, which portrays Bandinelli unfavourably. A portrait of Michelangelo connected with him is therefore a point where two careers that are usually told as opposites meet.

The work belongs to the Louvre's Department of Paintings and measures 49 by 36.4 centimetres. Its recorded location is the museum's storage, so it is not presented here as a highlight of a gallery walk. For visitors with a particular interest in Michelangelo's image or in Bandinelli's art, it is worth checking the Louvre's online collection and contacting the museum. The museum can confirm whether the work is currently on view, scheduled for display or available for study.

Key facts

Sources

• Wikidata Q18565901
• www.louvre.fr
• contact.louvre.fr