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Camillo Astalli

1650
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
A distant relative by marriage to Pope Innocent X, Camillo Astalli was made a prince of the church on September 19, 1650, and assumed the name Cardinal Pamphili. Here, Velázquez conveys a sense of the momentary and unfixed. The listing biretta atop the cardinal's head adds to the instability of the fleeting pose, as would have the original off-center placement of the sitter. This baroque exuberance was tempered when, in a later period, the canvas was cut down on the left and bottom to align the cardinal with the central axis of the painting.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Camillo Astalli
  • Artist: Velázquez (Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez) (Spanish, Seville 1599–1660 Madrid)
  • Date: 1650
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 24 × 19 1/8 in. (61 × 48.5 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: The Hispanic Society of America, New York
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings