Agostino Carracci, engraver (printmaker)

Although Agostino Carracci of Bologna was a direct descendent of Marcantonio’s style of engraving (the straight cross-hatching on the ear reveals this allegiance), by 1587 he had begun to integrate international engraving techniques. Here, he employed a broad burin and elegant, long curved lines spaced some distance apart to achieve the tactile qualities of the fur collar and satin coat. In this way, the work responds to the coloristic and textural demands of Venetian painting. The lozenge pattern on the painter’s skin and the abandonment of a strict contour on the face’s left edge indicate that he looked at Cornelis Cort’s engravings quite closely, if still with some hesitancy.

The print reproduces a self-portrait by Titian (now in Berlin). Agostino probably worked directly from the painting, which he significantly cropped, and from which he altered the clothing in order to provide clearer tactile and tonal contrasts.