The austere gaze belongs to Matilde Branca (Juva by marriage), opera singer and prominent personality in the salon of her father, Paolo Branca. The piece was commissioned by her husband Giovanni as a companion piece to his own portrait.

The canvas is considered a masterpiece of 19th-century portraiture, thanks to the accuracy of its psychological introspection and its formal resolution, which aimed to recapture the traditions of 16th-century Venetian portraiture.

The arrangement of the figure at a three-quarter angle, her arm resting on a chair covered with an ermine mantle spread, creates a series of planes that expand the sense of space in the painting. At the center of the canvas, the figure of the woman, wrapped in luxurious black-silk robes, is severe, contrasting with the lace that frames her hands and face. In addition, the hand that holds the glove reveals an homage to Tiziano, making explicit reference to L'uomo col guanto and L'uomo dagli occhi glauchi.