“Cosimo I de’ Medici in Armour”
“Cosimo I de’ Medici in Armour” is an oil on wood panel painting from circa 1545 by the Italian Mannerism, or Late Renaissance, artist, Bronzino. Bronzino is known for his portraits of the Medici court. This is one of many portraits that Bronzino did of Cosimo.
From 1539 onwards, Bronzino worked for the Medici family. He served as the court painter for Cosimo and his wife, Eleanor. Throughout his years of service, Bronzino created many portraits of the couple and their children.
In this portrait, Cosimo, who was the Duke of Florence and just 25 years old at the time, is depicted in his armor with his helmet in his hands. Approximately 20 copies were made of this portrait. Today, these portraits are located in collections in both Europe, Australia, and the United States. It is believed to have been an official portrait created as a propaganda of sorts.
The Medici family is known historically for their generous patronage of the arts. Cosimo commissioned the construction of the Uffizi offices in Florence, Italy in 1560 as a location to consolidate his administration. Cosimo died in 1574, just seven years before completion of the Uffizi offices in 1581. Today, it is inside these same buildings that a very large and important collection of art is housed.
This version of “Cosimo I de’ Medici in Armour” is currently in the collections of the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. Other versions can be seen at the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, in Madrid, Spain, the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, the Galleria Palatina in Florence, Italy, the Neue Galerie in Kessel, Germany, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the United States.
For more on Bronzino, please visit his short biography here.
You can find more artists to learn about here.
