A Caricature of L'Abbate Folinghi 1674 - 1755

Editor: So, this is Pier Leone Ghezzi’s, “A Caricature of L’Abbate Folinghi,” probably from the first half of the 18th century. It's a pencil drawing, almost a quick sketch. I’m immediately struck by how unflattering, yet somehow charming, it is. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Indeed, the charm arises, I think, from the concentrated symbolic weight Ghezzi gives to aspects of Folinghi's public identity, even at the expense of flattering realism. His oversized cloak and peculiar hat speak to his vocation as an Abbe. Do you see how his boots subtly undermine the gravitas of his religious garments? Editor: Now that you point it out, yes! The boots seem… pedestrian, clunky even. Like a country bumpkin dressed up in fancy religious garb. Curator: Precisely. Ghezzi is not merely recording an image, he's participating in a kind of cultural remembering – and gentle critiquing. This caricature is about power and persona, about how individuals are seen and remembered, especially in relation to their societal role. Does this tell us anything about Baroque ideals? Editor: It highlights, perhaps satirizes, the tension between the ideal and the real, the spiritual and the earthly? The symbols clash! Curator: Well put. And it reveals that even within formal portraiture conventions, there was always space for visual commentary and sly observation. Even caricature has continuity! Editor: I hadn't considered how much cultural information could be packed into such a quick drawing. The clothes *do* make the man…or at least how he’s perceived! Curator: Precisely. Images are potent tools of cultural memory, aren’t they?