Portrait of Countess Ludovica Torelli

Countess Torelli
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about Contess TorelliThe painting portrays Countess Ludovica Torelli sitting on a red velvet wheelchair. She is wearing an austere black overcoat with fur edging, red sleeve with golden decorations and a white veil on her head. Simple clothing is a symbol of her humility, while the wheelchair and the sleeve that covers her hands refer to the limb disease she had been suffering in the last ten years of her life.
The look is stern, but at the same time sweet and two tears are running down her face. We do not know anything of the room in which she is located, the only recognisable element is a long table on which lie a book and a statue of Christ at the Column.

Collegio Guastalla
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about Collegio GuastallaThe work is mentioned in the inventories of Guastalla of 1768 and was located in the Capitular Hall of Collegio della Guastalla.

Curiosity
The presence of a small statue depicting Christ at the Column is justified by the particular devotion of Countess Torelli to the Mystery of the Flagellation.

Colour ranges

Dark tones of brown and dark shades of brown tending to black dominate throughout the handwork. The only chromatic contrasts, yellow-brown and yellow-white, are visible on the countess's face and on the body of Christ. The architectural wings can be glimpsed through the very slight nuances of the lightest brown tones.

Analysis of light

The very faint light comes from the left and focuses on the face, on the veil of the countess, and on the body of Christ. There are few other details that receive light: the sleeve of the dress and its lapel. The masses and the architectural wings can be glimpsed, however the attention is drawn on the intimate relationship between the two figures.

Study of the composition

The vertical lines of the small column and the back architectural wings dominate; while the diagonal lines create a tension raising from the bottom upwards and are marked by the perspective inclination of the armchair. The countess's face is drawn to the right of the central symmetry line and is counterbalanced by the Christ slightly moved away from the edge. The most dynamic element is the body of Christ that is leaning forward.

Lombardy area 17th century oil on canvas 185x110 cm