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Official Portraits and Regional Identities

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Official Portraits and Regional Identities THEHABSBURGSANDTHEIRCOURTSINEUROPE,1400–1700.BETWEENCOSMOPOLITISMANDREGIONALISM OfficialPortraitsandRegionalIdentities ThecaseofEmperorMaximilianI(1459–1519) DagmarEichbergerȋȌͳ InhismonographMarketingMaximilian.ThevisualideologyofaHolyRomanEmperor,LarrySilver investigates the multiͲfaceted artistic projects that Maximilian I undertook in order to further his fameandtoshapehispublicimage.2TherecentexhibitionKaiserMaximilianI.unddieKunstder Dürerzeitanalysedtheemperor’slifeandhispatronageoftheartswithparticularemphasisonthe triumphalprocessionbothonparchmentandpaper.3Incontrasttohisfather,EmperorFrederickIII, Maximiliancanbedescribedasamostambitiousandmodernpatron.Thisappliesnotonlytothe employmentofnewmediasuchasprintedmaterial,butequallytoMaximilian’simaginativeuseof multiplelikenesses.Thepresentpaperinvestigatestheroleofportraitpaintingsbyfocusingbothon thegeographicconditionsthatdeterminedtheproductionofimagesandonMaximilian’spolitical agenda.Withinthelargebodyofportraitsthathavesurviveduntiltoday,onecanidentifyatleast fivedifferenttypesofimages.4 ManyofthecourtartistsinvolvedincreatingthepublicpersonaofMaximilianareknownby name:AmbrogiodePredisfromMilan,BernhardStrigelfromMemmingenandAlbrechtDürerfrom Nuremberg. Each can be associated with one or two specific portrait types that were used and reusedindifferentcontexts.TheNetherlandishpainterJoosvanClevewasnotformallyattachedto theimperialcourt,butneverthelessproducedadistinctiveportraittypethatwasimportantatthe time.5Thisessaywillinvestigatethespecificfeaturesoftheseportraittypesandpursuethequestion astowhethertherewasaregionalpreferenceinparticularfortheimagecreatedbyJoosvanCleve. AmbrogiodePredis.Theclassicalportrait ThereexistsonlyonecopyoftheportraitcreatedbyGiovanniAmbrogiodePredis,apaintingsigned anddatedbytheartistinthebottomleftͲhandcorner.6TheMilanportraitistjoinedtheHabsburg court in 1493, shortly after Maximilian had married Bianca Maria Sforza, his second wife. This particular portrait has occasionally been described as oldͲfashioned, as it adheres to the strict portraitinprofile.Itis,however,aclassicalformatthatwasreintroducedatthebeginningofthe fifteenthcenturyviacoinsandmedalsandremainedpopularwellintothesixteenthcentury.7The likeness emphasizes Maximilian’s aquiline nose, a distinctive trait that appears in most of his ©ÖAW,KULeuvenandauthors 100 ISBN978Ͳ94Ͳ6018Ͳ483Ͳ3 THEHABSBURGSANDTHEIRCOURTSINEUROPE,1400–1700.BETWEENCOSMOPOLITISMANDREGIONALISM portraits. If the anonymous drawing in Berlin is an authentic likeness of the emperor, De Predis idealizedhis facialfeatures.8In this mediumͲsized portraitMaximilianwearsagold brocadedress withablackfurcollarandablackhatprobablymadefromthesamematerial.Whilehispositionas KingoftheRomansishighlightedbyaLatininscription,heiswearingneitherasuitofarmournorany oftheattributestypicalofthisoffice.Thepatternofhisgoldbrocadedresshasbeeninterpretedby KarlSchützasasymbolofhisnewalliancewiththehouseofSforza.9Theceremonialchainofthe OrderoftheGoldenFleeceisthemostprominentattributeinthepainting.Maximilianwasmadea memberofthisBurgundianorderon31April1477,whichwasasignificantmomentinhislifeandin thehistoryoftheOrder.TheceremonialinaugurationisdocumentedbyaminiatureintheBruges chronicle of 148110 and is also described in the Vienna statute book of the Order of the Golden Fleece.11MaximilianimmediatelytookontheofficeofsovereignandheadoftheOrderandgreatly cherished his newly gained status. He held the office twice during his lifetime, first during the minorityofhissonPhiliptheHandsome(1478വ1506),andasecondtimeduringtheminorityofhis grandsonthefutureEmperorCharlesV(1500വ1558).Thisportraittypewasrepeatedinamodified versionbyananonymousGermanartistshowingMaximilianinashoulderͲlengthportrait,withthe emperorfacingtotheright.12 AlbrechtDürer.Alateportrait AverydifferentimageoftheemperorisrepresentedbyaportraittypethatwascreatedbyAlbrecht Dürerin1518.Attherequestoftheemperor,theNurembergartistdrewMaximilianfromlifewhile he was staying in the city of Augsburg to attend the Diet of Augsburg. Dürer’s charcoal drawing servedastheblueprintforthetwopaintedportraitsnowinViennaandNuremberg,13andforthe woodcut that was published in several editions soon after Maximilian’s death in January 1519.14 Dürer’s woodcut became the most widely distributed image of the emperor and exists in several editions;someprintswereembellishedwithcolourandshellgold.15WhiletheViennapaintingon woodandtheNurembergpaintingon canvaswere uniqueund probablynotmeanttotravel,the woodcutinspiredmanycontemporaryprintmakers:HansWeiditz,LucasvanLeyden,PieterdeJode andothers.16 JoosvanCleve.Maximilian’sNetherlandishlikeness The third portrait type can be associated with the AntwerpͲbased painter Joos van Cleve and his workshop(fig.1).Sofar,thisportraithaslargelyattractedtheinterestofasmallnumberofvanCleve specialistssuchasJohnHandandCécileScailliérez.17Theportraitexistsinseveralreplicasandcopies thatvaryinsizeandshowsnumerousvariationsregardingthechoiceofattributes.18 Maximilian’sbodyisalwaysshowninafrontalposition,withhisheadturnedslightlytothe left,sothathisfaceappearsinthreeͲquarterview.InsimilarfashiontotheportraitbyAmbrogiode Predis,Maximilianwearsaluxuriousovercoatmadefromgoldbrocadeandfittedwithabroadfur collar.Maximilian’sundershirtisblackincolourandhishead iscoveredwithasoftblackhat.He wears very fine leather gloves that are almost white in colour. Maximilian’s only ornament is the ©ÖAW,KULeuvenandauthors 101 ISBN978Ͳ94Ͳ6018Ͳ483Ͳ3 THEHABSBURGSANDTHEIRCOURTSINEUROPE,1400–1700.BETWEENCOSMOPOLITISMANDREGIONALISM OrderoftheGoldenFleece;therearenoreferencestohispositionasKingoftheRomansorasHoly RomanEmperor.Whilehislefthandisportrayedasifrestingontheledgeoftheframe,hisright handisliftedupslightlyhigherandholdsaposyofcarnations.19 Fig.1JoosvanCleveandworkshop,MaximilianI assovereignoftheOrderoftheGoldenFleece, wood,30.8x21.1cm,Berlin,KMPK,GG1321. BernhardStrigel.Thefirstofficialportrait A large group of portraits represents Maximilian wearing a polished suit of armour and carrying numerousregaliasuchasahalfͲarchcrown,asceptre,asword,andacoronationcloak.Whilethe paintings from this group show a wide range of styles and diverging facial features, they are all attributedtoBernhardStrigelandhisworkshop.20TheSwabianartistStrigelwascloselyattachedto Maximilian’s court.21 He produced two different portrait types, one showing Maximilian clad in armourandanotherinwhichheisdressedinmore‘civilian’orcourtlydress.22Formanyyears,Strigel seemstohavebeenMaximilian’spreferredportraitistuntilhefinallyturnedtoAlbrechtDüreronlya fewmonthbeforehisprematuredeath. WithintheStrigelgroupveryfewpanelscanbedatedaccurately.Theindividualportraitsare generallydatedbymeansofcircumstantialevidence,onthebasisofthestyleofthearmourorthe particular crown Maximilian is wearing. Karl Schütz proposed that the earliest portraits date from circa 1500.23 The Strigel portrait, now in Berlin, carries the date '1496' in the central axis of the painting(fig.2),thoughtheauthenticityofthedate‘1496’hasbeenquestionedbyErichEggbecause MaximilianwasappointedKingoftheRomansin1486andcrownedHolyRomanEmperorin1508.24 Theinscription‘DIVIMAXIMILIANIIMPERATORISFIGURAANNOSCUMESSETNATUSQUADRAGINTA’ totherightoftheclothofhonourpointstotheyear1499,asMaximilianisdescribedasbeing40 ©ÖAW,KULeuvenandauthors 102 ISBN978Ͳ94Ͳ6018Ͳ483Ͳ3 THEHABSBURGSANDTHEIRCOURTSINEUROPE,1400–1700.BETWEENCOSMOPOLITISMANDREGIONALISM yearsofage. 25 DieterVorsteherhasrecentlyarguedinfavourof1496beingtheyearinwhichthe panelwaspaintedbyStrigel.Heproposedthatthesecondinscriptionwasaddedthreeyearslater, whentheportraitwasgivenawayasagift.26 Fig.2BernhardStrigel,EmperorMaximilianI Fig.3BernhardSrigel,MaximilianIasHolyRoman dressedinarmourandpresentinghisregalia,oilon Emperor,circa1507/08,oilonwood,84x51.8cm, parchmentonwood,76,5x48cm,Berlin, Innsbruck,TirolerLandesmuseum. DeutschesHistorischesMuseum,inv.no. 1988/1496. Inportraitsofthiskind,MaximilianisalwaysshownasahalfͲlengthfigureinthreeͲquarter view,turningbodyandfacetotheright.Heisplacedinfrontofatextilebackgroundthatrepresents aclothofhonour.Inadditiontohismilitaryattire,hecarriessceptre,swordandacrown.Hisbent rightarmrestseitheronawindowsilloronapillow,demarcatingthespaceofthesitterfromthatof theviewer.IthasbeensuggestedthatStrigel’sofficialportraitofMaximilianinarmourwasmodelled onanearlierportraitofhisfather,EmperorFrederickIII(1415വ1493),27whichMaximilianprobably commissionedhimselfintheseconddecadeofthesixteenthcentury.Thereareindeedanumberof similarities, such as the choice of attributes and the positioning of the figure within the pictorial space.Bothmenholdemblemsofpower,thegoldensceptrerunsdiagonallyfromlowerrighttothe upperleft,andtherightarmrestscomfortablyonahorizontalparapet.Allthesefactorspointtoan intrinsicinterrelationshipbetweenthesetwoportraits. It can be assumed that they were both conceived as one left wing of a portrait diptych. Father and son are both turning to the right, facing their spouses Eleanor of Portugal and Bianca Maria Sforza on a complementary panel.28 While only one version of the portrait of Emperor ©ÖAW,KULeuvenandauthors 103 ISBN978Ͳ94Ͳ6018Ͳ483Ͳ3 THEHABSBURGSANDTHEIRCOURTSINEUROPE,1400–1700.BETWEENCOSMOPOLITISMANDREGIONALISM Frederick III is known, multiple copies of Emperor Maximilian’s portrait have survived. It can be assumedthatmanycopiesofMaximilian’sofficialportraitsweregivenawayasgifts,asthiswasa common practice at the time. The inscription on a lost version from Strasbourg indicated that Maximilian donated the likeness to the Johannite monastery after
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