Humanism and Artistic Manifestations in the “milieu” of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (1520-1589). Portraits of “Relatives” and “Friends” in Rome

Th e article analyses Cardinal Alessandro Farnese’s court by way of a description of its internal confi guration and its main protagonists, some of whom were of Spanish origin. Along with these refl ections, new lines of analysis are proposed regarding several portraits of members of the cardinal’s milieu, that were also made by fi gures closely related to the famous ecclesiastic. Th e proposals in this research address Taddeo Zuccari’s painting method and that of his younger brother, Federico, as well as Bartolomeo Passarotti, and the formal arrangement of various portraits by these painters, such as those of Saint Philip Neri and Annibal Caro, which are now preserved in prestigious public or private collections.