Ritratto di un generale — Uomo in costume militare

By 1550 Titian was the most sought-after portraitist in Europe, the painter Emperor Charles V would let no one else near. This life-size general stands in armour and a deep Titian red, a lance in his hand and a hunting dog at his side. The sitter's exact identity is no longer certain, though he is likely from one of the warrior families of the Italian south. Titian frames him almost as the god of war himself, and near his feet a small Cupid plays among the discarded weapons, softening all that armour with a hint of love. The face and figure came first. The river landscape behind him was only added around 1560, roughly a decade after the portrait itself was begun.