Unravelling Titian’s Role as a Court Painter of Charles V

Participant(s)

Activity date	13 Jan 2024
Degree of recognition

Description

In 1533, Titian officially entered the service of Charles V as a court painter. However, Titian’s duties were not so much those of an ordinary court painter concerned with decorative paraphernalia of the court. On the contrary, the emperor granted Titian the sole right to portray him by conferring the honorary titles of Count of Palatine and Knight of the Golden Spur on the Venetian master. This kind of exclusive position held by Titian at the Habsburg imperial court did not merely make him the sole supplier of portraits of Charles V, and by extension of members of the Habsburg dynasty. The role of principal portraitist at the imperial court of Charles V came with a unique set of responsibilities and expectations, which go far beyond our modern understanding of the function. The aim of this talk is therefore to take a closer look at the set of duties that Titian was expected to fulfill at the Habsburg court as the emperor’s principal portraitist. As such, a profounder understanding can be gained into the emperor’s motives for making Titian the principal portraitist of his imperial court.

Research Unit / Event Journal/Book Series

Link(s)

Other link(s)	Links https://hk.art.museum/en/web/ma/exhibitions-and-events/titian-and-the-venetian-renaissance-from-the-uffizi.html