Francesco I d'Este

When he was obliged not to work directly from the model (as in this case: the bust was derived from paintings by Sustermans), Bernini never failed to curse picturesquely, “it being a laborious thing and difficult to get a likeness”. Yet even this initial difficulty could turn to the advantage of art when the artist's imaginative inventiveness gained the upper hand over the demands of verisimilitude; such is the case with the portrait of the Duke of Modena, who had long asked for a work by Bernini. The showy sash wrapped round the cuirass in the bust of the Este prince is justified only by the contrasting play of light and shade which, like the cascade of curling hair, focuses attention on the prince's mobile and shrewd face.