Tristano Martinelli (actor)

Tristano Martinelli (c. 1769), in the Manchester Art Gallery, is one of Fragonard's fantasy portraits depicting the sixteenth-century Italian actor who created the commedia dell'arte character of Arlecchino (Harlequin). Fragonard was deeply engaged with theatrical culture, and this posthumous portrait-tribute connects his bravura painting style with the theatrical tradition of improvised performance. The bold, rapid brushwork seems itself to be a form of performance, the artist demonstrating his virtuosity with the same confidence that an actor commands the stage.

The theatrical costume is rendered with bravura brushwork that captures the flamboyance of the stage. Fragonard's characteristic impasto technique builds up the fabric textures with energetic, visible strokes.