Girl with a Fan (Lady in White), Titian, circa 1561

In 1561 titian sent alfonso ii d'este, duke of ferrara, a portrait of a person whom he described in the accompanying letter as the "most precious being in the world" to him (the letter is only preserved in a treatise by francesco scannelli). The portrait is probably the "lady in white". It was long assumed that titian was depicting his daughter lavinia in a wedding dress. This theory is not tenable. Titian probably created an ideal image of female beauty. He used a model that he also used in other paintings. The tradition of painting idealized female portraits ("belle donne") in venice goes back to works by giovanni bellini and giorgione/ inv gal. No. 170. Object Type: painting. Genre: portrait. Date: circa 1561. Dimensions: height: 102 cm (40.1 in); width: 86 cm (33.8 in). Medium: oil on canvas. Depicted People: Lavinia Vecellio. Collection: Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister. Tizian 072