Cane Aldrovandi (c.1625)

Guercino (1591-1666)

Cane Aldrovandi (Aldrovandi Dog)
c.1625
Oil on canvas, 112 x 173.3 cm
Norton Simon Museum, Pasadena

Canine portraits appear from the late 16th century forward, as dogs became beloved pets and, for the nobility, status symbols. This life-size portrait presents a specific dog, perhaps the favorite of Count Filippo Aldrovandi of Bologna (1598–1644), whose coat of arms is visible on its leather collar. About six years later, in 1631, the artist painted a portrait of the count’s horse as well. Both paintings would have been hung fairly high in a salon, or reception room, where they would appear to tower over the viewer. Guercino has silhouetted the brindle-coated dog against a rich blue sky, where precisely placed clouds emphasize the dog’s vivid presence and scale. A sweeping landscape behind the dog, believed to represent the Aldrovandi Castle, is more likely an invention of the artist. (Norton Simon)