# Portrait of a Man, Possibly Girolamo Rosati

**Lorenzo Lotto** (Italian, 1475–1556)  
1533–34  
oil on canvas  
Framed: 135.9 x 128 x 8.6 cm (53 1/2 x 50 3/8 x 3 3/8 in.); Unframed: 108.2 x 100.5 cm (42 5/8 x 39 9/16 in.)

Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1950.250. [The museum's record](https://clevelandart.org/art/1950.250).

## About this work

The gesture of the elegantly dressed man is a mystery. Is he rising from his chair to address someone or is he pointing to something outside the frame? His right hand rests on a piece of paper (a letter?), while on the table are clover—a symbol of abundance, good fortune, and happy marriage—and jasmine, associated with purity and love, further emphasized by the roses on the trellis. There may have been a companion portrait of the sitter’s bride, to whom he acknowledges his devotion. Another recent interpretation identifies the sitter as Girolamo Rosati, a high official in Fermo, on Italy’s east coast. The paper may be a design for one of his important architectural projects, to which he may be pointing in the distance. The interrupted moment is a naturalistic touch characteristic of Lotto, quite distinct from the formality of the other Italian Renaissance portraits in the museum's collection. Though this portrait clearly articulates the man’s status, Lotto emphasizes his individuality and interiority as much as a socially constructed identity.

_Text from the Cleveland Museum of Art._

Lorenzo Lotto painted this in 1533–34, aged about 58. It is now at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Lorenzo Lotto](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/lorenzo-lotto)

Italian, 1475–1556; born in Venice; died in Loreto

Lotto was born in Venice but spent much of his restless career elsewhere: in Treviso, Bergamo and the towns of the Marches, with a stay in Rome. Away from the shadow of Titian, he developed an intensely individual style, with sharp colour, unconventional compositions and portraits of unusual psychological depth. His surviving account book records his often precarious finances. He ended his life as an oblate at the shrine of the Holy House at Loreto.

_Written by Ochre Editions._

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- Culture: Italy
- The artist was about 58
- Real size: about 43 × 40 in (108 × 101 cm). The original is larger than our largest print, 24 × 36 in, so every print is a reduction.
- Century: 16th century
- Movement: [Renaissance](https://www.ochreeditions.com/movements/renaissance)
- Colour: teal
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/589.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/589/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68; 20 × 30 in $86; 24 × 36 in $108
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164; 20 × 30 in $208; 24 × 36 in $258
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98; 18 × 24 in $118; 20 × 30 in $148
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3; 20 × 30 in $5; 24 × 36 in $5

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/portrait-of-a-man-possibly-girolamo-rosati-cma-127571).