Focus on Two Busts of Cardinal Scipione Borghese and analyze the History and critical reaction.
On completion, both busts were taken to the Villa Borghese. They were purchased by the Italian State in 1892, and shown at the Galleria dell’Academia in Venice, until they were reunited with the rest of the collections at the Galleria Borghese in 1908. Restoration on the works took place in 1997.The first version is often considered the superior version with Howard Hibbard describing Bernini's handling of the marble as giving it a "new dimension of reality". Whilst the second is still clearly the work of Bernini, it is considered much less spontaneous., with Wittkower commenting that it "lacks the animation and vitality of the first one". Others, however, are quite happy to point out the strengths of the second bust, Charles Avery calling it "one of the greatest portraits of all time in any medium, this bust is a work of genius".
Galleria Borghese Howard Hibbard