n active and contemplative man. Clearly it is not the concept of physical appearance which defines the Dukes beauty in this portrait, rather it is the virtuosity and dignity of the image presented that unmistakably identifies the Duke as a representation of beautiful man of the Renaissance.By examining a number of different portraits of men and women of the Renaissance such as Titian’s La Bella, Bronzino’s Eleonora de Medici, Sofonisba Anguissola’s Self Portrait, Vasari’s Alessandro de Medici, Bronzino’s image of Cosimo de Medici and Pedro Berruguete’s Portrait of Federico da Mentelfeltro viewers can gain an understanding of the different concepts of beauty for men and women of this period. Obviously traditional stereotypes existed for both men and women, where masculinity strength and power were celebrated as male beauty, while elegant aesthetically pleasing women were regarded as the definition of great feminine beauty. Portraits which conform to standard images of the ‘beautiful woman’ and ‘handsome man’ include La Bella and Alessandro de Medici. However, just to accept these aesthetic ideals as the only acceptable interpretations of beauty of the time is to over-simplify the concept of beauty in the Renaissance. Beautiful portraits including that of Eleonora de Toledo and Federico da Montelfeltro often had powerful political significance and were often used as vital means of propaganda communication. Beyond these conventional images we have such images as Cosimo de Medici as Orpheus and Self Portrait by Sofonisba. Which, although rare, were recognised as beautiful portraits of the time, and present and much more unusual and intriguing visions of beauty. Through the exploration of this diverse range portraiture, the contrasting ideals of masculine and feminine beauty in the Renaissance have been explored. Yet overall, no matter what the gender orientation of the subject, it...
