_Giulio Romano_ (Roman: 1492-1546).
Giulio Pippi, called "the Roman," was born at Rome, and was
Raphael's favourite pupil; to him Raphael bequeathed his
implements and works of art. But the master could not also
bequeath his spirit, and in Giulio's works (such as 643 and
644, which, however, are now attributed to a pupil), though
"the archæology is admirable, the movements of the actors are
affected and forced, and the whole result is a grievous example
of the mannerism already beginning to prevail" (Woltmann and
Woermann: _History of Painting_, ii. 562). "Raphael worked
out the mine of his own thought so thoroughly, so completely
exhausted the motives of his invention, and carried his
style to such perfection, that he left nothing unused for
his followers.... In the Roman manner the dramatic element
was conspicuous; and to carry dramatic painting beyond the
limits of good style in art is unfortunately easy.... For all
the higher purposes of genuine art, inspiration passed from
his pupils as colour fades from Eastern clouds at sunset,
suddenly" (Symonds's _Renaissance_, iii. 359).... "Giulio
Romano alone, by dint of robust energy and lurid fire of fancy
flickering amid the smoke of his coarser nature, achieved a
triumph. His Palazzo del Te at Mantua may be cited as the most
perfect production of the epoch, combining, as it does, all
forms of antique decoration and construction with the vivid
individuality of genius" (_Symonds_, ii. 319; iii. 360). It was
in 1523 that Giulio entered the service of Federigo Gonzaga,
Duke of Mantua, and besides executing a very large number of
works in oil and fresco, he was distinguished as an architect
and rebuilt nearly the whole town.[156] Vasari made his
acquaintance there, and admired his works so much that Giulio
deserved, he said, to see a statue of himself erected at every
corner of the city. During his earlier period at Rome, Giulio
was entrusted with the completion of the frescoes of the Sala
di Costantino in the Vatican. Among his best oil-pictures are
the "Martyrdom of St. Stephen" in the church of that saint at
Genoa, and a "Holy Family" in the Dresden Gallery.
An illustration of the classic myth of the infancy of Jupiter, who was
born in Crete and hidden by his mother, Rhea, in order to save him
from his father Saturn ("all-devouring Time"), who used to devour his
sons as soon as they were born, from fear of the prophecy that one of
them would dethrone him. In the background are the Curetes "who, as
the story is, erst drowned in Crete that infant cry of Jove, when the
young band about the babe in rapid dance, arms in hand to measured
tread, beat brass on brass, that Saturn might not get him to consign to
his devouring jaws" (_Lucretius_, Munro's translation, ii. 629). This
picture has been much admired by artists. Samuel Palmer, the friend of
William Blake, wrote of it: "By the bye, if you want to see a picture
bound by a splendid imagination upon the fine, firm, old philosophy, do
go and look at the Julio Romano (Nursing of Jupiter) in the National
Gallery. That is precisely the picture Blake would have revelled in. I
think I hear him say, 'As fine as possible, Sir! It is not permitted
to man to do better!'" (_Memoir of Anne Gilchrist_, p. 59). Elsewhere
Palmer proposed to a friend as a compact test of taste the question:
"Do I love the Julio Romano in the National Gallery?" (_Life and
Letters of Samuel Palmer_, p. 250). Another distinguished artist, John
Linnell, was also a great admirer of the picture. He strongly urged
its purchase for the National Gallery, declaring it to be "full of
beauty and without any alloy" (Story's _Life of Linnell_, ii. 123).