Portrait of a Boy

For me, the Portrait of a Boy we present today is one of the most stunning Renaissance masterpieces. In the past it has been attributed to plenty of Renaissance geniuses: Lorenzo di Credi, Viti, Jacopo Francia, Raphael, and others, but Giovanni Morelli's reattribution of it to Perugino is now widely accepted. Although the lack of a landscape background is unusual for this painter, the style is typical of his portrait technique. Also the subject of the painting is very mysterious; it was long identified as Alessandro Braccesi, who was an Italian humanist, writer, and diplomat, but is now held to be unknown. Perugino was one of the earliest Italian practitioners of oil painting and the teacher of Raphael. This year in Italy you can find plenty of special events and exhibitions devoted to him, as there are celebrations for the 500th anniversary of his death. 

Look at a depth of the boy's sight. Incredible!

P.S. Compare the works of Perugino the master and his famous disciple Raphael!

P.P.S. If you're under the spell of this boy as much as I am, please check out our Renaissance 50 Postcard Set in the DailyArt Shop.  :))