The look(s) of Love: Petrarch, Simone Martini and the ambiguities of fourteenth-century portraiture

Abstract

In two sonnets written in the summer or autumn of 1336, Petrarch heaped praise upon a portrait of his beloved Laura that he had recently commissioned from Simone Martini. But while these poems complimented Martini’s artistry, they nevertheless appear to express an ambiguous understanding of the portrait’s character and moral status. Placing the two sonnets in the broader context of Petrarch’s oeuvre, this article argues that, rather than being manifestations of a ‘platonic’ understanding of beauty and love, they use Martini’s portrait not only to dramatize the delusions from which the poet suffered, but also to indict the folly of his love.

Keywords

• Petrarch
• Simone Martini
• portraiture
• Laura