(1595-1632)
A native of Bologna, Cardinal Ludovisi was the nephew of Pope Gregory XV. He was educated in the Collegio Germanico in Rome and at the University of Bologna where he graduated in 1615 with a degree in canon law. In 1621, upon his uncle's ascent to the papal throne, Ludovico obtained the cardinalate, with Santa Maria in Traspontina as his titular church. Ludovico also served as archbishop of Bologna, prefect of the Congregation of the Propaganda Fide, and vice-chancellor of the Holy Roman Church. He is best known for his collection of antiquities, which included the famed Dying Gaul now in the Capitoline Museum and Ares in the Palazzo Altemps, both in Rome. He was the patron of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Alessandro Algardi, and Guercino and is portrayed in Domenichino's portrait Pope Gregory XV and Cardinal Ludovico Ludovisi (1621-1623; Béziers, Musée des Beaux-Arts).
Historical dictionary of Renaissance art. Lilian H. Zirpolo. 2008.