Lorenzo Soranzo 

Jacopo Tintoretto's "Lorenzo Soranzo" is an oil painting, made with ground pigments suspended in linseed or walnut oil, applied to a stretched canvas. Tintoretto lays the paint in thin layers, building up the image gradually. This slow and skillful process allows for a remarkable rendering of texture, from the soft fur collar to the solemn, somewhat ashen face of the sitter. The work has a clear purpose. It conveys Soranzo's status as a Venetian nobleman, the work's darkness speaking to the somber nature of power. There is very little background detail and a notable emphasis on clothing. It is tempting to imagine a tailor being consulted. Soranzo’s luxurious garments point to Venice as a center for the global trade in textiles and fur. So, the next time you look at a painting, consider not just what is depicted, but how its materiality speaks to the culture that created it. By doing so, we resist the hierarchy that places ‘fine art’ above other forms of skilled making.