Francesco Trevisani (Capodistria 1659-1746 Rome)

There are several versions of this celebrated self-portrait showing Trevisani turned towards the viewer, with a palette and brush in his hands. He returned to the composition at different points in his long and illustrious career, which he mainly spent in Rome, marking the stages of his artistic life through self-portraiture. He also used it to reveal more private moments, such as the variant in the Musée des Beaux Arts, Toulouse, where he shows himself in the same pose, at his easel, painting a portrait of his wife.
We are grateful to Dr Karin Wolfe for confirming the attribution to Trevisani and dating the work to c.1700.