A woman with her hair still tousled from sleep and her nightshirt half-unbuttoned after a night of passion speaks the first words of the day. She is Costanza Bonarelli, lover of Gian Lorenzo Bernini and wife of one of the Master’s pupils. In Rome in the 1630s, the sculptor was at the height of his creative powers, and this work belongs to the series of so-called speaking portraits: sitters portrayed with slightly parted lips, caught in the act of uttering a word, thereby conveying extraordinary naturalism.

Bernini’s Innovation in the Speaking Portrait

This was a radical departure for the portrait genre, which until then had obeyed very different conventions: a severe gaze, closed lips, an almost solemn or austere tone — as exemplified by the works of Alessandro Algardi, Bernini’s main competitor.

Another fundamental innovation of Bernini’s production, clearly visible here, is his extraordinary command of materiality. Using various tools and techniques, he achieves remarkable realism in rendering a wide range of textures. We can almost feel the contrast between the soft fabric of Costanza’s blouse, the smooth skin of her face, and the thick, wavy strands of hair, each one seemingly carved individually.

A Story of Jealousy, Violence, and Power

Costanza’s relationship with Bernini was marked by deep jealousy, which would lead to her being disfigured on the sculptor’s orders after he discovered her affair with his brother, Luigi Bernini. Gian Lorenzo’s rage did not spare Luigi either, and Pope Urban VIII himself had to intervene to “settle” the matter.

The pontiff could not afford to lose his favoured sculptor and, despite Bernini’s guilt, punished him only with a fine (which he never paid), while sending Luigi into exile along with Bernini’s servant. The harshest and most unjust sentence fell upon Costanza, who endured the same treatment commonly inflicted upon courtesans: first imprisoned, and after serving her sentence, returned to her husband.

Her future, however, held an unexpected turn. Costanza went on to build a thriving career as an art dealer, and some of the works she owned can still be admired today at the Louvre.

An Extraordinary Portrait of an “Ordinary” Woman

The Portrait of Costanza Bonarelli is the only one in which Bernini sculpted the likeness of a common woman — someone he cared for deeply enough to carve from precious Carrara marble without hesitation.