Paintings by Titian and Rubens for Palazzo Te

As part of the ongoing collaboration between Factum Foundation and Fondazione Palazzo Te, two paintings were recorded in high-resolution in order to make facsimiles for exhibition display.

Installation view of ‘L’imperatore e il Duca. Carlo V a Mantova’ © Nicola Saccani | Fondazione Palazzo Te

**Titian, Federico Gonzaga, Ist Duke of Mantua (1529)**
Museo del Prado, Madrid

In early 2023, a team from Factum Foundation recorded in high-resolution Titian’s portrait of Federico Gonzaga, Ist Duke of Mantua (1529) inside the collection of the Museo del Prado. The oil painting was scanned using the Lucida 3D Scanner and composite photography and accurate data of both the surface and colour were used to make an exact facsimile of the artwork.

The 3D surface of the painting was printed using elevated printing and moulded to obtain a flexible gesso-based surface over which the colour could be printed in perfect register with the brushmarks. The facsimile was then stretched over a canvas and varnished to achieve an exact visual copy of the original oil painting.

The exhibition ‘L’imperatore e il Duca. Carlo V a Mantova’ (March 24 – June 25, 2023) explored the relationship between Emperor Charles V and Federico II Gonzaga, who was appointed Duke of the city of Mantua in 1530. Charles V visited the city while Palazzo Te was still undergoing decoration. He was building a net of alliances in order to strengthen his empire.

The Lucida 3D Scanner recording the surface of Federico Gonzaga, 1st Duke of Mantua in the Museo del Prado Conservation Department © Gabriel Scarpa | Factum Foundation

Rafa Rachewsky colour checking a test facsimile using a colour reference © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Foundation

Rafa Rachewsky colour checking a test facsimile using a colour reference © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Foundation

Rafa Rachewsky colour checking a test facsimile using a colour reference © Oak Taylor-Smith | Factum Foundation

**Rubens, The Ecstasy of St Gregory the Great (1608)**
Musée de Grenoble

A major work by Rubens, The Ecstasy of St Gregory the Great, was also recorded in the Musée de Grenoble in order to produce a facsimile for ‘Lo Sguardo di Rubens su Palazzo Te. Pittura, Trasformazione e Libertà’, an exhibition about the Flemish
artist that opened in October 2023 at Palazzo Te. In line with Factum Foundation’s policy, the digital archive relating to the painting was given to The Musée de Grenoble, providing an accurate record of their surface and colour at the time of recording.