Portrait of Niccolò Machiavelli

Portrait of Niccol Machiavelli is a portrait by the Italian painter Santi di Tito.

The portrait was created in the mid-sixteenth century. It depicts the Florentine historian and diplomat, one of the most important figures of the Italian Revival of Niccol Machiavelli. His gaze escapes somewhere to the side, beyond the frame of the picture; however, the whole has a fairly calm mood. It is not a portrait en pied, the model was depicted halfway, with the face directed slightly to the side, the so-called en trois quarts. The color gamut is limited. Warm, subdued colors dominate. Bronzes predominate in them. A strong accent of the picture is the red of the figure's robe. The composition is closed and static. The work has quite clear contours. The light in the image is diffused, it falls from outside the image, on the left. The contrasts of light and shadow are weak. Chiaroscuro is realistic, emphasizes the shapes of the model. The brightest points of the portrait are the gently lit face and hands of the figure.