Book Review: Titian Painted in a New Biography

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES
By Nicholas Delbanco

"Christ Carrying the Cross" by Titian, oil on canvas 67x77 | The Prado

This is a long book about a long life, a large volume about a large talent. Titian, its titular subject, was the most celebrated painter of his time. He died in his beloved Venice, Italy, on Aug. 27, 1576. The death certificate listed the cause of his demise as fever and age as 103. Sheila Hale is the author of guidebooks of Florence and Tuscany (1983), Venice (1984) and an architectural history of Verona (1991). What she has not done before is write principally as an art critic, and this is not the sort of book to read if you admire, say, Simon Schama on "Rembrandt's Eyes" or Robert Hughes on "Goya." We learn about Titian's business dealings, his letters to and from his patrons, his arguments with and aspirations for his children. Yet Hale's discussion is nothing if not comprehensive. [link]