scholars, elsewhere mentioned by us. To these we may add Niccolo da
Pesaro, who painted in the church of Ara Coeli; but whose best piece is
a Last Supper in the church of the sacrament at Pesaro. It is a picture
so well conceived and harmonized, and so rich in pictorial ornament,
that Lazzarini has descanted on it in his lectures as one of the first
of the city. It is said that Baroccio held this artist in great esteem.
Baglione commended him for his early works, but it must be confessed
that he did not persevere in his first style, and fell into an insipid
manner, whence he suffered both in reputation and fortune. Another
artist of Pesaro, instructed by Zuccaro, was Gio. Giacomo Pandolfi,
whose works are celebrated in his native city, and do not yield the palm
to those of Federigo, as the picture of S. George and S. Carlo in the
Duomo. He ornamented the whole chapel in the Nome di Dio, with a variety
of subjects in fresco, from the Old and New Testament; but as he was
then become infirm from age and the gout, they did not add much to his
fame. His greatest merit was the instilling good principles into Simon
Canterini, of whom, as well as of the Pesarese artists his followers, we
shall write at large in the school of Bologna. One Paolo Cespede, a
Spaniard, called in Rome Cedaspe, also received his education from
Zuccaro. He commenced his career in Rome, and excited great expectations
from some pictures in fresco, which are still to be seen at the church
of Trinita de' Monti, and other places. He had adopted a natural style,
and was in a way to rise in his profession, when he obtained an
ecclesiastical benefice in his native country, and retired to reside
upon it. Marco Tullio Montagna accompanied Federigo to Turin as an
assistant; and a small picture of S. Saverio and other saints in a
church of that city, generally attributed to the school of Zuccaro, is
probably by him. He painted in Rome in the church of S. Niccolo in
Carcere, in the vaults of the Vatican, and in many other places, in a
tolerable style, but nothing more.
After the above named artists a crowd of contemporaries present
themselves, more particularly those who had the direction of the works
under Gregory XIII. The Sala de' Duchi was entrusted to Lorenzino of
Bologna, who was invited to Rome from his native city, where he enjoyed
the reputation of an excellent painter, and deservedly so, as we shall
see in his place. He undertook the decoration of the gallery of the
Vatican, which, from the vast size of that building, forms a boundless
field of art. Niccolo Circignani, or delle Pomarance, already mentioned
in the first book, distributed the work amongst a number of young
artists, who there painted historical subjects, landscapes, and
arabesques. The Pope was desirous that the walls also should serve the
cause of science, and ordered the compartments to be adorned with
geographical delineations of ancient and modern Italy, a task which was
assigned to Padre Ignazio Danti, a Domenican, a mathematician and
geographer of his court, and who was afterwards promoted to the
bishopric of Alatri. Ignazio was born in Perugia, of a family devoted to
the fine arts, and had two brothers, painters; Girolamo, of whom there
remain some works in S. Pietro, on the model of Vasari; and Vincenzio,
who in Rome assisted Ignazio, and there died, and was a good fresco
painter. Another grand work was also undertaken about this time, which
was the continuation of the gallery of Raffaello, in an arm of the
building contiguous to it, where, in conformity to the plan of
Raffaello, it was intended to paint four subjects in every arcade, all
from the New Testament. Roncelli, the scholar of Circignano, our notice
of whom we shall reserve to a subsequent epoch, was charged with the
execution of this plan, but was himself subject to the direction of
Padre Danti, experience having shewn that the entire abandonment of a
design to the direction of practical artists is injurious to its
execution, as there are few that, in the choice of inferior artists, are
not governed by influence, avarice, or jealousy. The selection,
therefore, was reserved to Danti, who to an excellent practical
knowledge of the art of design, united moral qualities that insured
success: and under his direction the whole work was regulated and
conducted in such a manner, that the spirit of Raffaello seemed to be
resuscitated in the precincts of the Vatican. But the hand was no longer
the same, and the imbecility which was apparent in the new productions,
when compared with the old, betrayed the decline of the art, though we
occasionally meet with subjects by Tempesti, Raffaellino da Reggio, the
younger Palma, and Girolamo Massei, which reflect a ray of honour on the
age.
Another superintendant of the works of the Vatican, but rather in
architecture than in painting, was Girolamo Muziano da Brescia, who,
undistinguished in his native place, came young to Rome, and was there
considered the great supporter of true taste. He derived his principles
both in design and colour from the Venetian School, and early acquired
such skill in landscape, that he was named in Rome Il Giovane de' Paesi.
But he soon afterwards adopted a more elevated style, and devoted
himself with such obstinate assiduity to study, that he shaved his head
in order to prevent himself from going out of the house. It was at this
time that he painted the Raising of Lazarus, afterwards transferred from
the church of S. Maria Maggiore to the Quirinal Palace; and which, when
exposed to public view, immediately conciliated to him the esteem and
protection of Bonarruoti. His pictures occur in various churches and
palaces of Rome, and are often ornamented with landscapes in the style
of Titian. The church of the Carthusians possesses one of singular
beauty. It represents a troop of Anchorets attentively listening to a
Saint. There is great elegance and good disposition in the picture of
the Circumcision in the Gesu, and the Ascension in Ara Coeli displays an
intimate knowledge of art. The picture too of S. Francis receiving the
Stigmata, in the church of the Conception, is an enchanting piece, both
as regards the figures and the landscape. Nor was he beneath himself in
the pictures which he executed in the Duomo at Orvieto, which are highly
commended by Vasari. The chapel of the Visitation in the Basilica
Loretana, possesses three pictures by him, and that of the Probatica
discovers great originality and expression. In the Duomo of Foligno, a
picture by him in fresco, of the Miracles of S. Feliciano is pointed
out, which was formerly hidden by dust, but was a few years ago restored
in a wonderful manner to all its original freshness and charm of colour.
The figures of Muziano are accurately drawn, and we not unfrequently
trace in them the anatomy of Michelangiolo. He excelled in painting
military and foreign dresses; and above all, in representing hermits and
anchorets, men of severe aspects, whose bodies are attenuated by
abstinence, and his style, in general, inclines rather to the dry than
the florid. We are indebted to this artist for the engraving of the
Trajan Column. Giulio Romano had begun to copy it, and the laborious
undertaking was continued and perfected by Muziano, and so prepared for
the engraver.
The most celebrated scholar of Muziano, was Cesare Nebbia of Orvieto. He
presided over the works of Sixtus, entrusting the completion of his own
designs to the younger painters. In this task he was assisted by Gio.
Guerra da Modena, who suggested to him the subjects, and apportioned the
work among the scholars. Both the one and the other of these artists,
was endowed with a facility which was essential to the vast works on
which they were employed in the five years reign of Sixtus, in the
chapel of S. Maria Maggiore, in the library of the Vatican itself, in
the Quirinal and Lateran palaces, and at the Scala Santa, and many other
places. But in other respects, Muziano left his scholars far behind, as
he was possessed of a great and inventive genius, while Nebbia was more
remarkable for the mechanism of his art; particularly when he decorated
walls. There are, however, some beautiful and well coloured pictures by
him; among which may be mentioned the Epiphany, in the church of S.
Francis at Viterbo, quite in Muziano's style. Baglione associates with
Nebbia Giovanni Paolo della Torre, a gentleman of Rome, who was raised
by Girolamo above the rank of a mere dilettante. Taja too, adds Giacomo
Stella da Brescia, who, he observes, had degenerated in some degree from
the style of his master. He was employed, nevertheless, both in the
gallery of Gregory XIII., and in other places, not without commendation.
It may be observed, that M. Bardon states him to have been a native of
Lyons, long resident in Italy.
Another foreigner, but who came a considerable time after Muziano, was
Raffaellino da Reggio, who, after being instructed in the first
principles of the art by Lelio di Novellara, formed a master style in
Rome. Nothing was wanting to this artist except a greater knowledge of
design, as he possessed spirit, disposition, delicacy, relief, and
grace; qualities not common in that age. His pictures in oil are
occasionally, though not often, found in galleries, but his best works
are his frescos of small figures, such as the two charming fables of
Hercules, in the ducal hall at Florence, and the two gospel stories in
the gallery adjoining to that of Raffaello d'Urbino. He painted also at
Caprarola in competition with the Zuccari, and Vecchi, and with such
success, that his figures seem living, while those of his comrades are
inanimate. This excellent artist died immaturely, greatly lamented,
without leaving any pupil worthy of his name. He was however considered
as the head of a school in Rome, and his works were studied by the youth
of the academy. Many artists adopted his manner of fresco, particularly
Paris Nogari of Rome, who left there numerous works, which are known for
their peculiar manner; amongst others, some subjects in the gallery. He
had another follower in Gio. Batista della Marca, of the family of
Lombardelli, a young man of great natural talents, but which were
rendered unavailing from his want of application. Many pictures in
fresco by him remain in Perugia and in Rome, but the best are in
Montenovo, his native place. None, however, approached so near to
Raffaellino as Giambatista Pozzo, who also died young, and who, as far
as regards ideal beauty, may be considered the Guido of his day. To be
convinced of this it is only necessary to see the Choir of Angels, which
he painted in the chapel of the Gesu. If he had survived to the time of
the Caracci, it is impossible to say to what degree of perfection he
might not have attained.
Tommaso Laureti, a Sicilian, already noticed with commendation by us
among the scholars of F. Sebastiano, and deserving honourable mention
among the professors of Bologna, was invited to Rome in the pontificate
of Gregory XIII., and was entrusted with a work of an invidious nature.
This was the decoration of the ceiling and lunettes in the Hall of
Constantine, the lower part of which had been illustrated by the pencils
of Giulio Romano and Perino. The subjects chosen by this master were
intended to commemorate the piety of Constantine, idols subverted, the
cross exalted, and provinces added to the church. Baglione informs us
that Laureti was entertained by the Pope in his palace in a princely
manner; and either from his natural indolence, or his reluctance to
return to a laborious profession, procrastinated the work so much, that
Gregory died, and Sixtus commenced his reign before it was completed.
The new pontiff was aware that the artist had abused the patience of his
predecessor, and became so exasperated, that Laureti, in order to avert
his wrath, proceeded in all haste to finish his labours. When the work
however was exposed to public view, in the first year of the new
pontificate, it was judged unworthy of the situation. The figures were
too vast and heavy, the colouring crude, the forms vulgar. The best part
of it was a temple in the ceiling, drawn in excellent perspective, in
which art indeed Laureti may be considered as one of the first masters
of his day. Misfortune was added to his disgrace; for he was not only
not rewarded as he had expected, but the cost of his living and
provisions were placed to his charge, even to the corn supplied to his
horse. So that he gained no remuneration, and actually died in poverty
in the succeeding pontificate. He had however an opportunity afforded
him of redeeming his credit, particularly in the stories of Brutus and
Horatius on the bridge, which he painted in the Campidoglio, in a much
better style. Intimately acquainted with the theory of art, and
possessing an agreeable manner of inculcating its principles, he taught
at Rome with considerable applause. He had a scholar and assistant in
the Vatican, in Antonio Scalvati, a Bolognese, who in the time of Sixtus
was employed among the painters of the Library, and who was afterwards
engaged in painting portraits under Clement VIII., Leo XI., and Paul V.;
and was highly celebrated in this department.
A better fortune attended Gio. Batista Ricci da Novara, who arrived at
Rome in the pontificate of Sixtus, and who from his despatch manifested
in the works at the Scala Lateranense, and the Vatican Library, was
immediately taken into employ by the Pope, who appointed him
superintendant for the decorations of the palace of the Quirinal. He was
also held in favour by Clement VIII., in whose time he painted in S.
Giovanni Laterano the history of the consecration of that church: and
there, according to Baglione, he succeeded better than in any other
place. He left not a few works in Rome, and elsewhere his pictures
display a facility of pencil, and a brilliancy and elegance which
attract the eye. He was born in a city into which Gaudenzio Ferrari had
introduced the Raffaellesque style, and where Lanini, his son-in-law had
practised it; but in whose hands it seemed to decline, and still more so
under Ricci, when he came to Rome; so that his style was Raffaellesque
reduced to mannerism, like that professed by Circignani, Nebbia, and
others of this age.
Giuseppe Cesari, also called Il Cavaliere d'Arpino, is a name as
celebrated among painters, as that of Marino among poets. These two
individuals, each in his line, contributed to corrupt the taste of an
age already depraved, and attached more to shew than to reality. Both
the one and the other exhibited considerable talents, and it is an old
observation, that the arts, like republican states, have received their
subversion from master spirits. Cesari discovered great capacity from
his infancy, and soon attracted the admiration of Danti, and obtained
the protection of Gregory XIII., with the reputation of the first master
in Rome. Some pictures painted in conjunction with Giacomo Rocca,[65]
from designs of Michelangiolo, (in which Giacomo was very rich,)
established his reputation. So much talent was not required to secure
him general applause, as the public of that day were chiefly attracted
by the energy, fire, tumult, and crowds, that filled his composition.
His horses, which he drew in a masterly manner, and his countenances,
which were painted with all the force of life, won the admiration of the
many; while few attended to the incorrect design, the monotony of the
extremities, the poverty of the drapery, the faulty perspective and
chiaroscuro. Of these few however were Caravaggio, and Annibale Caracci.
With these he became involved in disputes, and challenges were mutually
exchanged. Cesari refused the challenge of Caravaggio, as he was not a
cavaliere, and Annibale declined that of the Cavaliere d'Arpino,
alleging that the pencil was his proper weapon. Thus these two eminent
professors met with no greater obstacle in Rome in their attempts to
reform the art, than Cesari and his adherents.
The Cavaliere d'Arpino survived both these masters more than thirty
years, and left behind him _progeniem vitiosiorem_. To conclude, he was
born a painter, and in so vast and difficult an art, he had endowments
sufficient to atone, in part, for his defects. His colouring in fresco
was admirable, his imagination was fruitful and felicitous, his figures
were animated, and possessed a charm that Baglione, who himself
entertained very different principles, could not refrain from admiring.
Cesari moreover practised two distinct manners. The one, the most to be
commended, is that in which he painted the Ascension, at S. Prassede,
and several prophets, _di sotto in su_: the Madonna in the ceiling of S.
Giovanni Grisogono, which is remarkable for its fine colouring; the
gallery of the Casa Orsini; and in the Campidoglio, the Birth of
Romulus, and the battle of the Romans and the Sabines, a painting in
fresco, preferred by some to all his other works. Others of his pictures
may be added, particularly some smaller works, with lights in gold,
exquisitely finished, as if they were by an entirely different artist.
Of this kind there is an Epiphany in possession of the Count Simonetti,
in Osimo, and S. Francis in extacies, in the house of the Belmonti at
Rimino. His other style was sufficiently free, but negligent, and this
latter he used too frequently, partly through impatience of labour, and
partly through old age, as may be seen in three other subjects in the
Campidoglio, painted in the same saloon forty years after the first. His
works are almost innumerable, not only in Rome, where he worked in the
pontificates of Gregory and Sixtus, and where, under Clement VIII., he
presided over the decorations in S. Gio. Laterano, and there continued
under Paul V., but also in Naples, at Monte Casino, and in various
cities of the Roman state, without mentioning the pictures sent to
foreign courts, and painted for private individuals. For the latter
indeed, and even for persons of inferior rank in life, he worked more
willingly than for princes, with whom, like the Tigellius of Horace, he
was capricious and morose. He was indeed desirous of being solicited by
persons of rank, and often affected to neglect them, so much had the
applause of a corrupted age flattered his vanity.
Cesari had many scholars and assistants, whom he more particularly
employed in the works of the Lateran; as he did not deign in those times
often to take up the pencil himself. Some of these pupils adopted his
faults, and as they did not possess the same genius, their works proved
intolerably bad. A vicious example, easy of imitation, is, as Horace has
observed, highly seductive. There were however some of his school, who
in part at least corrected themselves from the works of others. His
brother, too, Bernardino Cesari, was an excellent copyist of the designs
of Bonarruoti, and worked assiduously under the Cav. Giuseppe, but
little remains of him, as he died young. One Cesare Rossetti, a Roman,
served under Arpino a longer time, and of him there are many works in
his own name. There are also to be found some public memorials of
Bernardino Parasole, who was cut off in the flower of his age. Guido
Ubaldo Abatini of Citta di Castello, merited commendation from Passeri
as a good fresco painter, particularly for a vault at the Vittoria.
Francesco Allegrini di Gubbio was a fresco painter, in design very much
resembling his master, if we may judge from the cupola of the Sacrament
in the Cathedral of Gubbio, and from another at the Madonna de' Bianchi.
We there observe the same attenuated proportions, and the same
predominant facility of execution. He nevertheless shewed himself
capable of better things, when his mind became matured, and he worked
with more care. He is commended by Ratti for various works in fresco,
executed at Savona, in the Duomo, and in the Casa Gavotti, and for
others in the Casa Durazzo at Genoa; where one may particularly admire
the freshness of the colouring, and the skill exhibited in his _sotto in
su_. He is also commended by Baldinucci for similar works in the Casa
Panfili, and merits praise for his smaller pieces and battles frequently
found in Rome and Gubbio. He also added figures to the landscapes of
Claude, two of which are to be seen, in the Colonna palace. He lived a
long time in Rome, and his son Flaminio with him, commemorated by Taja
for some works in the Vatican. Baglione has enumerated not a few other
artists, in part belonging to the Roman state, and in part foreigners.
Donato of Formello (a fief of the dukes of Bracciano) had greatly
improved on the style of Vasari his master, as is proved by his
histories of S. Peter, in a staircase of the Vatican, particularly the
one of the piece of money found in the fish's mouth. He died whilst yet
young, and the art had real cause to lament his loss. Giuseppe Franco,
also called _dalle Lodole_, in consequence of his painting a lark in one
of his pieces in S. Maria in Via, and on other occasions, and Prospero
Orsi, both Romans, had a share in the works prosecuted by Sixtus. When
these were finished, the former repaired to Milan, where he remained
some years; the latter, from painting historical subjects, passed to
arabesque, and from his singular talents in that line, was called
Prosperino dalle Grottesche. Of the same place was Girolamo Nanni,
deserving of particular mention, because, during all the time that he
was engaged in these works, he never hurried himself, and to the
directors who urged him to despatch, he answered always _poco e buono_,
which expression was ever afterwards attached to him as a surname. He
continued to work with the same study and devotion, as far as his
talents would carry him, at S. Bartolommeo all'Isola, at S. Caterina de'
Funai, and in many other places: he was not however much distinguished,
except for his great application. Of him however, and of Giuseppe
Puglia, or Bastaro, and of Cesare Torelli, also Romans; and of Pasquale
Cati da Jesi, an inexhaustible painter of that age, though somewhat
affected, and of many professors, that are in fact forgotten in Rome
itself, I have thought it my duty to give this short notice, as I had
pledged myself to include a number of the second rate artists. It would
be an endless task to enumerate here all the foreign artists. It may be
sufficient to observe, that in the Vatican library more than a hundred
artists, almost all foreigners, were employed. In the first book I have
mentioned Gio. de' Vecchi, an eminent master, who, from the time of his
works for the Farnese family, was considered a first rate artist; and
the colony of painters, his fellow citizens, whom Raffaellino brought to
Rome. In the same book we meet with Titi, Naldini, Zucchi, Coscj, and a
number of Florentines, and in the following book Matteo da Siena and
some others of his school. Again, in the fourth book, Matteo da Leccio
and Giuseppe Valeriani dell' Aquila will have place; and in the third
volume will be described Palma the younger (amongst the Venetians) who
worked in the gallery; about which time Salvator Fontana, a Venetian,
painted at S. Maria Maggiore, whom it is sufficient to have named. We
may also enumerate Nappi and Paroni of Milan, Croce of Bologna,
Mainardi, Lavinia Fontana, and not a few others of various schools, who
in those times painted in Rome, without ultimately remaining there, or
leaving scholars.
A more circumstantial mention may be made of some _oltramontani_, who,
in conjunction with our countrymen, were employed in the works in these
pontificates; and it may be done with the more propriety, as we do not
speak of them in any other part of our work. But those who worked in
Rome were very numerous in every period, and it would be too much to
attempt to enumerate them all in a history of Italian painting. One
Arrigo, from Flanders, painted a Resurrection in the Sistine chapel, and
also worked in fresco in other places in Rome; and is commended by
Baglione as an excellent artist. Francesco da Castello, was also of
Flanders, and of a more refined and correct taste. There is a picture by
him at S. Rocco, with various saints; and it is perhaps the best piece
the world possesses of him; but almost all his works were painted for
the cabinet, and in miniature, in which he excelled. The Brilli we may
include among the landscape painters.