Bartolommeo Colleone 1455 - 1465

Curator: Immediately striking, isn't it? This relief in bronze, likely dating between 1455 and 1465, depicts Bartolommeo Colleoni, a condottiero of the Republic of Venice. Its attributed to Marco Guidizani. Editor: Austere. Imposing. I'm immediately struck by the way the face is so...flat, almost deliberately avoiding a deeper representation of character, contrasting the round perimeter framing the face. It’s undeniably arresting, but leaves me strangely cold. Curator: Precisely! Consider this piece through a lens of power and representation. Colleoni wasn't just a soldier; he was essentially a CEO of a private military force. A formal portrayal made to be intimidating and not really intimate, right? Editor: Absolutely, there's this meticulous arrangement of elements—the inscription almost embracing the contours, leading the eye inward towards Colleoni’s resolute profile. Notice also the geometric exactness, offering itself in service to power, privilege and social structure! Curator: It makes one think about the purpose of art – in the grand scheme, right? And think how something as comparatively “minor” as this relief could, in its day, project potent symbolism and power to a wide audience. Even more, imagine the many viewers seeing this artwork in our time and reflecting upon the very concepts of identity and reputation and lasting appeal of artistic works. Editor: That is it exactly - isn't that interesting?! I keep returning to this notion that the relief’s formalism itself serves a specific social function. This level of composition removes it from something more natural and promotes the status and class to which this man aspired. Curator: It almost feels too perfect. Now that's just the artist, as it is often intended, reflecting and embodying the tastes and norms that give definition to the Renaissance, as with almost all artwork of that time and genre! This piece still "speaks" and still evokes something emotional today. Editor: And perhaps, at some level, its austere precision holds a truth about the realities of power then, as today. What appears as beautiful, or what appeared so back then, also speaks now about the more timeless themes: ambition, persona and reputation. It invites many thoughts for one seemingly flat-appearing figure. Curator: In a nutshell, that’s it. An enduring artwork – not merely decorative.