Full title | Head of a Man in Blue |
---|---|
Artist | Giacomo Francesco Cipper |
Artist dates | 1664 - 1736 |
Series | Two Expressive Heads |
Date made | early 18th century |
Medium and support | Oil on canvas |
Dimensions | 47 x 36.2 cm |
Acquisition credit | Bequeathed by Maurice Woolff Jacobson, 1944 |
Inventory number | NG5468 |
Location | Not on display |
Collection | Main Collection |
A man looks out at us with his shirt opened to reveal his neck, disfigured by a goitre (a swelling caused by an enlarged thyroid gland). Despite suffering this medical condition, he has an amused expression and the artist has portrayed him sympathetically. He is evidently poor, as can be seen by his ragged clothes – the blue jacket he wears has been roughly stitched at the seams.
This painting’s style and subject matter are typical of Giacomo Francesco Cipper, an artist active in Lombardy in the early eighteenth century. The artist has applied thick brushstrokes (for example, on the man’s temple) and has left the reddish-brown ground exposed to form the shadows in the darker areas (for example, around his eyes). The animated brushwork gives movement and life to the figure, as does the off-centre pose, and tilt of the head.
This characterful portrait is a pair to Head of a Man in Red, also in our collection.
A man looks out at us with his shirt opened to reveal his neck, disfigured by a goitre (a swelling caused by an enlarged thyroid gland). Despite suffering this medical condition, he has an amused expression and the artist has portrayed him sympathetically. He is evidently poor, as can be seen by his ragged clothes – the blue jacket he wears has been roughly stitched at the seams.
This painting’s style and subject matter are typical of Giacomo Francesco Cipper, an artist who was active in Lombardy in the early eighteenth century. The freedom of the paint handling is startling: the artist has applied thick impastoed brushstrokes (for example, on the man’s temple) and has purposely left the reddish-brown ground exposed to form the shadows in the darker areas (for example, around his eyes). The painting’s ‘blotchy’ – almost impressionistic – appearance is achieved by not blending the daubs of paint, and the animated brushwork gives movement and life to the figure, as does the off-centre pose, and tilt of the head.
This characterful portrait is one of a pair with Head of a Man in Red, also in our collection.
Download a low-resolution copy of this image for personal use.
License and download a high-resolution image for reproductions up to A3 size from the National Gallery Picture Library.
License imageThis image is licensed for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons agreement.
Examples of non-commercial use are:
- Research, private study, or for internal circulation within an educational organisation (such as a school, college or university)
- Non-profit publications, personal websites, blogs, and social media
The image file is 800 pixels on the longest side.
As a charity, we depend upon the generosity of individuals to ensure the collection continues to engage and inspire. Help keep us free by making a donation today.
You must agree to the Creative Commons terms and conditions to download this image.
Two Expressive Heads
These two paintings, which are of similar subjects and identical in size, were almost certainly intended as pendants, or companion pieces, to be hung together. The men portrayed here are evidently poor – their ragged clothing is roughly stitched together, one suffers from a swollen goitre on his neck and the other has missing teeth – but the artist’s portrayal is entirely sympathetic. These men are full of character, their expressions lively and engaging. The loose, animated brushwork adds to their sense of immediacy.
The style and subject of these paintings are typical of Giacomo Francesco Cipper, who specialised in painting low-life scenes of beggars, street-sellers and vagabonds in Milan – a genre in which another painter working in Lombardy, Giacomo Ceruti (1697–1767), later excelled.
These two paintings, which are of similar subjects and identical in size, were almost certainly intended as pendants, or companion pieces, to be hung together. The men portrayed here are evidently poor – their ragged clothing is roughly stitched together, one suffers from a swollen goitre on his neck and the other has missing teeth – but the artist’s portrayal is entirely sympathetic. These men are full of character, their expressions lively and engaging. The loose, animated brushwork adds to their sense of immediacy.
The style and subject of these paintings are typical of Giacomo Francesco Cipper, who specialised in painting low-life scenes of beggars, street-sellers and vagabonds in Milan – a genre in which another painter working in Lombardy, Giacomo Ceruti, later excelled.


More paintings by Giacomo Francesco Cipper
