Titian’s "Lady in White"

In 2018, Columbus Museum of Art, the first chartered museum in the state of Ohio, marks its 140th anniversary. As part of the anniversary celebrations, Columbus Museum of Art partnered with the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister in Columbus’ sister city, Dresden, Germany, to bring a masterwork to Ohio. Gemäldegalerie’s collection features paintings from the 15th to the 18th centuries, including major Italian Renaissance works. 

The most famous painter from The Venetian School, Titian used strong colors as his main expressive device. Mystery has always shrouded the identity of his Lady in White. Is she his daughter Lavinia? Is she an ideal picture of female beauty? Theories abound and the true identity of the Lady in White remains a puzzle to this day.

In addition to the Portrait of a Lady in White, the exhibition includes the other baroque portraits from the permanent collection of the Columbus Museum of Art that provide context for the Titian masterpiece.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.   

Titian (Tiziano Vecellio, Italian, c. 1488/90–1576), Portrait of a Lady in White, c. 1561. Oil on canvas, 102 x 86 cm Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. Photo: Elke Estel/ Hans-Peter Klut