The Man from Artemino
by GARZONI, Giovanna, Watercolour on parchment, 386 x 600 mm
Ferdinando I de’ Medici commissioned Bernardo Buontalenti to build a villa at Artemino. A century later Giovanna Garzoni painted this jewel-coloured, quasi-surrealist combination of portrait and genre scene. The old peasant has evidently been bringing the villa’s products to the top of its hill. But these food are not for the likes of him.