My coworkers at DailyArt recently accused me of presenting a lot of Italian Renaissance paintings. Well, I won't lie; I got fascinated by them! :D So time for a new one. ;)
This is the earliest surviving double portrait in Italy, the first to show the sitters in a domestic setting, and the first with a view onto a landscape. The woman, dressed luxuriously à la française, her sleeve embroidered with letters spelling "lealtà" (faithfulness), is observed by a man—her betrothed?—appearing at a window, his hands on an identifying coat of arms. The two figures may be Lorenzo di Ranieri Scolari and Angiola di Bernardo Sapiti, who were married about 1439. Lippi’s task was complicated by the Italian preference for the profile view as opposed to the three-quarter view preferred north of the Alps.
Beautiful, isn't it?
P.S. If you're hungry for more Italian masterpieces, like the DailyArt team, check this brief guide of the Italian Renaissance. <3
P.P.S. If you would like to save this beauty for 2023, please check our DailyArt Calendars. Full of art, now also in a new form as a planner (also as a wall and desk calendar), it will make your upcoming year as artsy as possible. :)