Collections: European Art: Portrait of Catellano Trivulzio

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Portrait of Catellano Trivulzio

Bernardino paints Catellano Trivulzio with his face in strict profile, much as in an antique medal or coin, but with the bust in a three-quarter view. This composition allowed the artist to display the splendid velvets, furs, and embroideries worn by the members of Trivulzio’s powerful, affluent class. Archival documents describe Catellano as unpopular among his fellow Milanese, perhaps a result of the Trivulzio family’s active role in the French occupation of the city from 1499 to 1512. Bernardino indicates the precise age of his sitter— twenty-six—in a Latin inscription at the top of the work that also includes the date March 13, 1505.


• Artist: Bernardino de'Conti, Italian, Milanese School, documented 1494-1522
• Medium: Tempera and oil on panel
• Place Made: Milan, Italy
• Dates: 1505
• Dimensions: 29 1/8 x 22 1/4 in. (74 x 56.5 cm) Frame: 54 3/8 x 37 in. (138.1 x 94 cm)
• Inscriptions: Inscribed across top: "CATELLAN TRIVULCIUS ANNORUM 26 1505 DIE 13 MARTII"
• Collections: European Art
• Museum Location: This item is on view in Beaux-Arts Court, North, 3rd Floor
• Accession Number: 21.141
• Credit Line: Bequest of A. Augustus Healy
• Image: Overall, 21.141_cropped.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
Bernardino de'Conti (Italian, Milanese School, documented 1494-1522). Portrait of Catellano Trivulzio, 1505. Tempera and oil on panel, 29 1/8 x 22 1/4 in. (74 x 56.5 cm) Frame: 54 3/8 x 37 in. (138.1 x 94 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Bequest of A. Augustus Healy, 21.141 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 21.141_cropped.jpg)