1.2" x 1.3"
Soft Enamel Pin
Single Posted
Rubber Clasp
 
Inspired by "Vertumnus" by Giuseppe Arcimboldo
 
Giuseppe Arcimboldo (c. 1526/27-1593) was an Italian Mannerist painter who is best known for his imaginative portraits that form human heads out of still-life objects, such as his 1591 painting "Vertumnus." It depicts the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II through an eclectic composition of fruits, flowers and vegetables, such as a pear nose, peach cheeks, and pea-pod eyebrows. Though humorous in air, the painting was also meant to convey the power of its sitter, with specific choices holding symbolic political meaning. For example, the choice to use corn to represent Rudolf II’s ears is an allude to his power and wealth, as the crop originated in the New World. As the painting was created during the emergence of disciplines like botany and zoology.