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2023_12_25 Chiesa di San Giovanni in Monte Bologna Emilia-Romagna Italy
Bologna is a city in and the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy, of which it is also its largest. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its metropolitan area is home to more than 1,000,000 people. It is known as the Fat City for its rich cuisine, and the Red City for its red tiled rooftops and, more recently, its leftist politics. It is also called the Learned City because it is home to the oldest university in the world.
Originally Etruscan, the city has been an important urban center for centuries, first under the Etruscans (who called it Felsina), then under the Celts as Bona, later under the Romans (BonÅnia), then again in the Middle Ages, as a free municipality and later signoria, when it was among the largest European cities by population. Famous for its towers, churches and lengthy porticoes, Bologna has a well-preserved historical center, thanks to a careful restoration and conservation policy which began at the end of the 1970s. Home to the oldest university in continuous operation, the University of Bologna, established in AD 1088, the city has a large student population that gives it a cosmopolitan character. In 2000, it was declared European capital of culture and in 2006, a UNESCO "City of Music" and became part of the Creative Cities Network. In 2021, UNESCO recognized the lengthy porticoes of the city as a World Heritage Site.
Bologna is an important agricultural, industrial, financial and transport hub, where many large mechanical, electronic and food companies have their headquarters as well as one of the largest permanent trade fairs in Europe. According to recent data gathered by the European Regional Economic Growth Index (E-REGI) of 2009, Bologna is the first Italian city and the 47th European city in terms of its economic growth rate; in 2022, Il Sole 24 Ore named Bologna the best city in Italy for overall quality of life.
History
History
Antiquity and Middle Ages
Traces of human habitation in the area of ââBologna go back to the 3rd millennium BCE, with significant settlements from about the 9th century BCE (Villanovan culture). The influence of Etruscan civilization reached the area in the 7th to 6th centuries, and the Etruscan city of Felsina was established at the site of Bologna by the end of the 6th century. By the 4th century BCE, the site was occupied by the Gaulish Boii, and it became a Roman colony and municipium with the name of BonÅnia in 196 BCE. During the declining years of the Western Roman Empire Bologna was repeatedly sacked by the Goths. It is in this period that legendary Bishop Petronius, according to ancient chronicles, rebuilt the ruined town and founded the basilica of Saint Stephen. Petronius is still revered as the patron saint of Bologna.
In 727â28, the city was sacked and captured by the Lombards under King Liutprand, becoming part of that kingdom. These Germanic conquerors built an important new quarter, called "addizione longobarda" (Italian meaning "Longobard addition") near the complex of St. Stephen. In the last quarter of the 8th century, Charlemagne, at the request of Pope Adrian I, invaded the Lombard Kingdom, causing its eventual demise. Occupied by Frankish troops in 774 on behalf of the papacy, Bologna remained under imperial authority and prospered as a frontier mark of the Carolingian empire.
Bologna was the center of a revived study of law, including the scholar Irnerius c 1050 â after 1125) and his famous students, the Four Doctors of Bologna.
After the death of Matilda of Tuscany in 1115, Bologna obtained substantial concessions from Emperor Henry V. However, when Frederick Barbarossa subsequently attempted to strike down the deal, Bologna joined the Lombard League, which then defeated the imperial armies at the Battle of Legnano and established an effective autonomy at the Peace of Constance in 1183. Subsequently, the town began to expand rapidly and became one of the main commercial trade centers of northern Italy thanks to a system of canals that allowed barges and ships to come and go. Believed to have been established in 1088, the University of Bologna is widely considered the world's oldest university in continuous operation. The university originated as a center for the study of medieval Roman law under major glossators, including Irnerius. It numbered Dante, Boccaccio and Petrarch among its students.The medical school was especially renowned. By 1200, Bologna was a thriving commercial and artisanal center of about 10,000 people.
During a campaign to support the imperial cities of Modena and Cremona against Bologna, Frederick II's son, King Enzo of Sardinia, was defeated and captured on 26 May 1249 at the Battle of Fossalta. Though the emperor demanded his release, Enzo was thenceforth kept a knightly prisoner in Bologna, in a palace that came to be named Palazzo Re Enzo after him. Every attempt to escape or to rescue him failed, and he died after more than 22 years in captivity. After the death of his half-brothers Conrad IV in 1254, Frederick of Antioch in 1256 and Manfred in 1266, as well as the execution of his nephew Conradin in 1268, he was the last of the Hohenstaufen heirs.
During the late 1200s, Bologna was affected by political instability when the most prominent families incessantly fought for the control of the town. The free commune was severely weakened by decades of infighting, allowing the Pope to impose the rule of his envoy Cardinal Bertrand du Pouget in 1327. Du Pouget was eventually ousted by a popular rebellion and Bologna became a signoria under Taddeo Pepoli in 1334. By the arrival of the Black Death in 1348, Bologna had 40,000 to 50,000 inhabitants, reduced to just 20,000 to 25,000 after the plague.
Early modern
The period of Papal rule over Bologna (1506â1796) has been generally evaluated by historians as one of severe decline. However, this was not evident in the 1500s, which were marked by some major developments in Bologna. In 1530, Emperor Charles V was crowned in Bologna, the last of the Holy Roman Emperors to be crowned by the pope. In 1564, the Piazza del Nettuno and the Palazzo dei Banchi were built, along with the Archiginnasio, the main building of the university. The period of Papal rule also saw the construction of many churches and other religious establishments, and the restoration of older ones. At this time, Bologna had ninety-six convents, more than any other Italian city. Painters working in Bologna during this period established the Bolognese School which includes Annibale Carracci, Domenichino, Guercino, and others of European fame.
The period of Papal rule over Bologna (1506â1796) has been generally evaluated by historians as one of severe decline. However, this was not evident in the 1500s, which were marked by some major developments in Bologna. In 1530, Emperor Charles V was crowned in Bologna, the last of the Holy Roman Emperors to be crowned by the pope. In 1564, the Piazza del Nettuno and the Palazzo dei Banchi were built, along with the Archiginnasio, the main building of the university. The period of Papal rule also saw the construction of many churches and other religious establishments, and the restoration of older ones. At this time, Bologna had ninety-six convents, more than any other Italian city. Painters working in Bologna during this period established the Bolognese School which includes Annibale Carracci, Domenichino, Guercino, and others of European fame.
It was only towards the end of the 16th century that severe signs of decline began to manifest. A series of plagues in the late 16th to early 17th century reduced the population of the city from some 72,000 in the mid-16th century to about 47,000 by 1630. During the 1629â1631 Italian plague alone, Bologna lost up to a third of its population. In the mid-17th century, the population stabilized at roughly 60,000, slowly increasing to some 70,000 by the mid-18th century. The economy of Bologna started to show signs of severe decline as the global centers of trade shifted towards the Atlantic. The traditional silk industry was in a critical state. The university was losing students, who once came from all over Europe, because of the illiberal attitudes of the Church towards culture (especially after the trial of Galileo). Bologna continued to suffer a progressive deindustrialization also in the 18th century.
In the mid-1700s, Pope Benedict XIV, a Bolognese, tried to reverse the decline of the city with a series of reforms intended to stimulate the economy and promote the arts. However, these reforms achieved only mixed results. The pope's efforts to stimulate the decaying textile industry had little success, while he was more successful in reforming the tax system, liberalizing trade and relaxing the oppressive system of censorship.
The economic and demographic decline of Bologna became even more noticeable starting in the second half of the 18th century. In 1790, the city had 72,000 inhabitants, ranking as the second largest in the Papal States; however, this figure had remained unchanged for decades.
During this period, Papal economic policies included heavy customs duties and concessions of monopolies to single manufacturers.
Anonymous. Students drawing at the Carracci Academy. (c. 1600) Red chalk on paper. Museum Kunst Palast, Dusseldorf, mit Sammlung Kunstakademie.
La Iglesia de San Bartolomeo en la Isla tiene más de mil años y se encuentra en la Isla Tiberina, entre el Rione Trastevere y el barrio de los judíos. De hecho, a finales del siglo X, el emperador Otón III quiso construir la iglesia en el lugar donde surgió un antiguo templo dedicado a Esculapio, el dios de la medicina.
Inicialmente dedicada a San Adalberto, sufrió numerosas obras de restauración entre los siglos XI y XII.
Tras haber sido completamente destruido por una llena del Tíber en 1557, el edificio sagrado fue reconstruido en el siglo XVII por el arquitecto Orazio Torriani. El exterior presenta una fachada barroca de dos plantas y un pórtico; el interior se compone de tres naves sostenidas por columnas antiguas. En la iglesia están custodiados las reliquias de San Bartolomé Apóstol, cuyo cuerpo descansa en el sarcófago de pórfido rojo bajo el altar mayor, y las de San Adalberto, obispo de Praga, que fue asesinado en el año 997 mientras intentaba evangelizar a las poblaciones paganas del norte de Europa.
Entre las obras más cautivadores que se encuentran en la iglesia, se destaca la Flagelación de Cristo, una pintura de Antonio Carracci (1589 -1618), sobrino de Annibale.
Italian, 17th century
Red chalk and brown wash on paper
11 3/4 x 16 1/2 in.
Purchased with the Cornell Anniversary Acquisitions Fund, 2000.10
One of the most widely-known legends pertaining to the early history of ancient Rome is what is generally called the rape or abduction of the Sabines. This is the subject depicted in the Cornell’s drawing by an anonymous seventeenth-century artist with stylistic affinities to such Bolognese artists as the influential Carracci brothers. The story recounts that while early Roman settlers rapidly grew in population, men greatly outnumbered women, endangering the sustainability of the newly founded city. In spite of Romulus’ diplomatic efforts, neighboring communities refused to grant their daughters in marriage to foreign men; Romans thus abducted maidens of the Sabine tribe and took them as their wives. It was a popular subject matter for artists since the fifteenth century, although it reached its greatest popularity during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Despite its modest size, the drawing is very strong in its composition. The violent act of abduction takes place in an open square surrounded by classical buildings, an imaginary ancient city. Particularly striking is its emphatic stress on the great resistance and terror of the panic-stricken Sabine women as they futilely fight back their Roman attackers. Desperate mothers try to protect their daughters from brutal aggressors, and young women ferociously attempt to defend themselves, twisting their bodies and pushing away the soldiers in an effort to get away from their grabbing hands. The female protagonists’ adamant resistance is powerfully conveyed in their strong bodily movements, their arms thrown in the air and pushing against their attackers. While capturing the turbulence inherent to the narrative, this draftsman masterfully creates a rhythmic harmony and overall unity by positioning entwined bodies to form repeated diagonals that cut across to the left and to the right, linking them with one another across the composition. His/her manner of pictorial narrative exemplifies the Baroque penchant for dramatic figures in frantic movement. It appears that with quick and energetic brush strokes, the artist was sketching out grandiose compositional ideas, comparable to those of other famous seventeenth-century artists.
The Cornell Fine Arts Museum, Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida
Since the Renaissance the Pantheon has been used as a tomb. Those who are buried here are the painters Raphael and Annibale Carracci, the composer Arcangelo Corelli, and the architect Baldassare Peruzzi.
Michel-François Dandré-Bardon - French, 1700 - 1783
The Adoration of the Skulls, c. 1733/1734
West Building, Main Floor — Gallery 55
Born in 1700 into a prominent family of magistrates and lawyers in Aix-en-Provence, Michel François Dandré-Bardon passed his adolescence anticipating a legal career. At the age of twenty, he departed his native town for the capital intending to study law, but he entered the studio of another native Aixois, Jean Baptiste Van Loo (1684-1745), under whom he received his first training alongside Carle Van Loo (1705-1765). In his study of ancient art and anatomy, as in copying the academies of his master, Dandré-Bardon demonstrated rapid progress. Jean Baptiste's financial hardship may have constrained him to undertake the restoration of the frescoes in Fontainebleau and his pupil Dandré-Bardon to transfer to the studio of Jean François de Troy (1679-1752) in 1723. Anticipating the artistic interests of his mature career, the young painter immediately set to copying works by great Venetian masters, producing paintings of a soft and sensuous style. He soon entered the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. In the competition for the Rome Prize in 1725, he took only second place with his While Playing, the Infant Moses Makes the Crown Fall from the Head of Pharaoh (location unknown). Nevertheless, the Académie de France in Rome agreed to accept him on condition that his parents pay his expenses, and he left for the southern city, where he would stay for the next five years. A central component of his Roman years was the study of the art of antiquity as well as of Raphael (1483-1520) and the masters of the Bolognese school-Annibale Carracci (bapt. 1560-1609), Domenichino (1581-1641), and Guido Reni (1575-1642). With a marked talent for facility and gracefulness, Dandré-Bardon showed an affinity with Pietro da Cortona (1596?-1669). In 1730, he visited Venice for six months, observing the work of Giambattista Tiepolo (1696-1770) and almost certainly meeting Sebastiano Ricci (bapt. 1659-1734), whose art inspired him throughout his career.
The young painter returned to France via Aix-en-Provence, where a second version of his Augustus Punishing the Extortioners--he had judged his first version less than successful--was in place in the Audience Room of the Chambre des Comptes, having been sent from Italy. In 1731 the artist completed five more commissions in Aix. The only one that survives is Christ on the Cross (Aix-en-Provence, Saint-Esprit). A major decorative cycle--nine compositions, all destroyed during the French Revolution--was carried out for the Hôtel de Ville in Aix. Sketches survive for two of the compositions--The Union of the Procuration of Provence at the Council of Aix and The Inhabitants of Aix Giving Aid to Marseilles Against the Aragonais (both Aix-en-Provence, Musée Granet)--in which the force of swirling masses is matched by vibrant color. The painter is also known to have produced a few portraits.
Dandré-Bardon attempted to solidify his position in the Paris art world following his return to the capital in 1734. In that year, the Archbishop Charles Vintimille (1655-1746) commissioned him to paint the pendants Death of the Virgin and The Visit to Saint Elizabeth (both, location unknown) for the Capuchin Church in the Marais. Before installation, these paintings were exhibited in the Salon of 1734. Upon the submission in 1735 of Tullia Running Her Chariot over the Body of Her Father (Montpellier, Musée Fabre), he was received into the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. Only a year later, he was made professor.
During a period when there was little demand for history painting from royal or private sources, Dandré-Bardon found patronage in the church. Through his association with the archbishop of Paris, he completed a major commission for the order of the Daughters of Saint Thomas de Villeneuve, in which he represented the founder of the order performing good works (Neuilly-sur-Seine, Daughters of Saint Thomas de Villeneuve). The paucity of commissions for historical scenes, however, led the artist to return to Aix, where he remained for the following decade, the most active of his career. Several of the large decorative schemes that he painted soon after he arrived in his birthplace--for the Société des Concerts and for the university--have been almost entirely lost. Dandré-Bardon devoted the five years between 1744 to 1749 to the decoration of the Salle des Actes at the university with four historical and two allegorical works, including another version of Christ on the Cross (lost) as well as the allegorical figure of Theology (Aix-en-Provence, Saint-Jean de Malte). During the same period, the artist completed a variety of religious commissions for the parish churches around Aix, including The Miracle of Saint Heldrad and the altarpiece Saint Crépin and Saint Crépinen (both Lambesc, Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire). Saint Jacques Interceding with the Virgin on Behalf of the Souls in Purgatory, in the same church, is one of his most lyrically beautiful works, employing a strikingly Venetian palette of pinks, yellows, and blues and demonstrates the painter's mastery in rendering different effects of light.
Over the last years of his life, Dandré-Bardon increasingly became engaged in the administration of academic organizations and in his official duties. At the same time that he accepted the post of controller of the decoration of the Royal Galleries in 1748, Dandré-Bardon was working on an Allegory of the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, known through preparatory drawings and an oil sketch (Aix-en-Provence, Musée Arnaud), but his composition apparently was never completed. Shortly thereafter, the painter returned to Paris to replace François Boucher (1703-1770) as professor in the Académie royale, resuming his life as an academician and advancing the movement to revive history painting in the grand manner. In spite of his dedication to history painting, Dandré-Bardon produced a few genre paintings for private collectors, the most notable of which is his series The Four Ages of Man (Aix-en-Provence, Musée Granet) painted in 1743-1744. His last known painting, The Death of Socrates (lost), was exhibited in the Salon of 1753 and heralded a new period of artistic seriousness. Dandré-Bardon was a founding member of the Marseille Académie, of which he became director in 1754. From this period on, he actively published a number of books and treatises, including the Traité de peinture (1765). When, ill health prevented him from painting, he continued to draw. He died in 1783.
[Frances Gage, in French Paintings of the Fifteenth through the EIghteenth Century, The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue, Washington, D.C., 2009: 127.]
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The National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC is a world-class art museum that displays one of the largest collections of masterpieces in the world including paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, and decorative arts from the 13th century to the present. The National Gallery of Art collection includes an extensive survey of works of American, British, Italian, Flemish, Spanish, Dutch, French and German art. With its prime location on the National Mall, surrounded by the Smithsonian Institution, visitors often think that the museum is a part of the Smithsonian. It is a separate entity and is supported by a combination of private and public funds. Admission is free. The museum offers a wide range of educational programs, lectures, guided tours, films, and concerts.
The original neoclassical building, the West Building includes European (13th-early 20th century) and American (18th-early 20th century) paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, and temporary exhibitions. The National Gallery of Art was opened to the public in 1941 with funds provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The original collection of masterpieces was provided by Mellon, who was the U. S. Secretary of the Treasury and ambassador to Britain in the 1930s. Mellon collected European masterpieces and many of the Gallery’s original works were once owned by Catherine II of Russia and purchased in the early 1930s by Mellon from the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad.
The core collection includes major works of art donated by Paul Mellon, Ailsa Mellon Bruce, Lessing J. Rosenwald, Samuel Henry Kress, Rush Harrison Kress, Peter Arrell Browne Widener, Joseph E. Widener, and Chester Dale. The Gallery's collection of paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, medals, and decorative arts traces the development of Western art from the Middle Ages to the present, including the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas and the largest mobile created by Alexander Calder.
The NGA's collection galleries and Sculpture Garden display European and American paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, and decorative arts. Paintings in the permanent collection date from the Middle Ages to the present. The Italian Renaissance collection includes two panels from Duccio's Maesta, the tondo of the Adoration of the Magi by Fra Angelico and Filippo Lippi, a Botticelli work on the same subject, Giorgione's Allendale Nativity, Giovanni Bellini's The Feast of the Gods, Ginevra de' Benci (the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas) and groups of works by Titian and Raphael.
The collections include paintings by many European masters, including a version of Saint Martin and the Beggar, by El Greco, and works by Matthias Grünewald, Cranach the Elder, Rogier van der Weyden, Albrecht Dürer, Frans Hals, Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, Francisco Goya, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, and Eugène Delacroix, among others. The collection of sculpture and decorative arts includes such works as the Chalice of Abbot Suger of St-Denis and a collection of work by Auguste Rodin and Edgar Degas. Other highlights of the permanent collection include the second of the two original sets of Thomas Cole's series of paintings titled The Voyage of Life, (the first set is at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute in Utica, New York) and the original version of Watson and the Shark by John Singleton Copley (two other versions are in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Detroit Institute of Arts).
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Gallery_of_Art
Andrew W. Mellon, who pledged both the resources to construct the National Gallery of Art as well as his high-quality art collection, is rightly known as the founder of the gallery. But his bequest numbered less than two hundred paintings and sculptures—not nearly enough to fill the gallery’s massive rooms. This, however, was a feature, not a failure of Mellon’s vision; he anticipated that the gallery eventually would be filled not only by his own collection, but also by additional donations from other private collectors. By design, then, it was both Andrew Mellon and those who followed his lead—among them, eight men and women known as the Founding Benefactors—to whom the gallery owes its premier reputation as a national art museum. At the gallery’s opening in 1941, President Roosevelt stated, “the dedication of this Gallery to a living past, and to a greater and more richly living future, is the measure of the earnestness of our intention that the freedom of the human spirit shall go on.”
www.doaks.org/resources/cultural-philanthropy/national-ga...
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________________________________
The National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC is a world-class art museum that displays one of the largest collections of masterpieces in the world including paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, and decorative arts from the 13th century to the present. The National Gallery of Art collection includes an extensive survey of works of American, British, Italian, Flemish, Spanish, Dutch, French and German art. With its prime location on the National Mall, surrounded by the Smithsonian Institution, visitors often think that the museum is a part of the Smithsonian. It is a separate entity and is supported by a combination of private and public funds. Admission is free. The museum offers a wide range of educational programs, lectures, guided tours, films, and concerts.
The original neoclassical building, the West Building includes European (13th-early 20th century) and American (18th-early 20th century) paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, and temporary exhibitions. The National Gallery of Art was opened to the public in 1941 with funds provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The original collection of masterpieces was provided by Mellon, who was the U. S. Secretary of the Treasury and ambassador to Britain in the 1930s. Mellon collected European masterpieces and many of the Gallery’s original works were once owned by Catherine II of Russia and purchased in the early 1930s by Mellon from the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad.
The core collection includes major works of art donated by Paul Mellon, Ailsa Mellon Bruce, Lessing J. Rosenwald, Samuel Henry Kress, Rush Harrison Kress, Peter Arrell Browne Widener, Joseph E. Widener, and Chester Dale. The Gallery's collection of paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, medals, and decorative arts traces the development of Western art from the Middle Ages to the present, including the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas and the largest mobile created by Alexander Calder.
The NGA's collection galleries and Sculpture Garden display European and American paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, and decorative arts. Paintings in the permanent collection date from the Middle Ages to the present. The Italian Renaissance collection includes two panels from Duccio's Maesta, the tondo of the Adoration of the Magi by Fra Angelico and Filippo Lippi, a Botticelli work on the same subject, Giorgione's Allendale Nativity, Giovanni Bellini's The Feast of the Gods, Ginevra de' Benci (the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas) and groups of works by Titian and Raphael.
The collections include paintings by many European masters, including a version of Saint Martin and the Beggar, by El Greco, and works by Matthias Grünewald, Cranach the Elder, Rogier van der Weyden, Albrecht Dürer, Frans Hals, Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, Francisco Goya, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, and Eugène Delacroix, among others. The collection of sculpture and decorative arts includes such works as the Chalice of Abbot Suger of St-Denis and a collection of work by Auguste Rodin and Edgar Degas. Other highlights of the permanent collection include the second of the two original sets of Thomas Cole's series of paintings titled The Voyage of Life, (the first set is at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute in Utica, New York) and the original version of Watson and the Shark by John Singleton Copley (two other versions are in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Detroit Institute of Arts).
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Gallery_of_Art
Andrew W. Mellon, who pledged both the resources to construct the National Gallery of Art as well as his high-quality art collection, is rightly known as the founder of the gallery. But his bequest numbered less than two hundred paintings and sculptures—not nearly enough to fill the gallery’s massive rooms. This, however, was a feature, not a failure of Mellon’s vision; he anticipated that the gallery eventually would be filled not only by his own collection, but also by additional donations from other private collectors. By design, then, it was both Andrew Mellon and those who followed his lead—among them, eight men and women known as the Founding Benefactors—to whom the gallery owes its premier reputation as a national art museum. At the gallery’s opening in 1941, President Roosevelt stated, “the dedication of this Gallery to a living past, and to a greater and more richly living future, is the measure of the earnestness of our intention that the freedom of the human spirit shall go on.”
www.doaks.org/resources/cultural-philanthropy/national-ga...
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From the museum label: Among his innovations, Annibale launched the vogue for landscapes in which nature was carefully studied but transformed by the imagination into an idyllic setting for religious or mythological stories. The main figure's large almond eyes derive from the study of ancient sculpture. Annibale's painting depicts John heralding the arrival of Christ, to whom he points and whom he will baptize the next day. This beautifully preserved oil on copper has been part of several illustrious collections, including the Farnese family's in Parma and the Orléans collection in Paris.
Antoine Carrache (Antonio Carracci)
Venice, circa 1583-Rome, 1618
The deluge. Around 1616-1618
In the 1653 Inventory of the collection of Cardinal Mazarin, in Paris, this painting incorporates the composition of a fresco painted by Antoine Carrache in Rome, at the Quirinal Palace, between May and November 1616.
From the museum label: This majestic painting-intended as a window onto heaven-was painted for Cardinal Pietro Aldobrandini just after the artist's arrival in Rome in 1595. Annibale brought together two currents of Italian painting: a north Italian sensitivity to the effects of natural light and color, and the spatial organization and idealized figures associated with Raphael. The figure of God the Father is based on an ancient Roman sculpture of Jupiter. Together with Caravaggio, Annibale was the most influential painter of the seventeenth century and pivotal for reviving classical forms.
Michel-François Dandré-Bardon - French, 1700 - 1783
The Adoration of the Skulls, c. 1733/1734
West Building, Main Floor — Gallery 55
Born in 1700 into a prominent family of magistrates and lawyers in Aix-en-Provence, Michel François Dandré-Bardon passed his adolescence anticipating a legal career. At the age of twenty, he departed his native town for the capital intending to study law, but he entered the studio of another native Aixois, Jean Baptiste Van Loo (1684-1745), under whom he received his first training alongside Carle Van Loo (1705-1765). In his study of ancient art and anatomy, as in copying the academies of his master, Dandré-Bardon demonstrated rapid progress. Jean Baptiste's financial hardship may have constrained him to undertake the restoration of the frescoes in Fontainebleau and his pupil Dandré-Bardon to transfer to the studio of Jean François de Troy (1679-1752) in 1723. Anticipating the artistic interests of his mature career, the young painter immediately set to copying works by great Venetian masters, producing paintings of a soft and sensuous style. He soon entered the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. In the competition for the Rome Prize in 1725, he took only second place with his While Playing, the Infant Moses Makes the Crown Fall from the Head of Pharaoh (location unknown). Nevertheless, the Académie de France in Rome agreed to accept him on condition that his parents pay his expenses, and he left for the southern city, where he would stay for the next five years. A central component of his Roman years was the study of the art of antiquity as well as of Raphael (1483-1520) and the masters of the Bolognese school-Annibale Carracci (bapt. 1560-1609), Domenichino (1581-1641), and Guido Reni (1575-1642). With a marked talent for facility and gracefulness, Dandré-Bardon showed an affinity with Pietro da Cortona (1596?-1669). In 1730, he visited Venice for six months, observing the work of Giambattista Tiepolo (1696-1770) and almost certainly meeting Sebastiano Ricci (bapt. 1659-1734), whose art inspired him throughout his career.
The young painter returned to France via Aix-en-Provence, where a second version of his Augustus Punishing the Extortioners--he had judged his first version less than successful--was in place in the Audience Room of the Chambre des Comptes, having been sent from Italy. In 1731 the artist completed five more commissions in Aix. The only one that survives is Christ on the Cross (Aix-en-Provence, Saint-Esprit). A major decorative cycle--nine compositions, all destroyed during the French Revolution--was carried out for the Hôtel de Ville in Aix. Sketches survive for two of the compositions--The Union of the Procuration of Provence at the Council of Aix and The Inhabitants of Aix Giving Aid to Marseilles Against the Aragonais (both Aix-en-Provence, Musée Granet)--in which the force of swirling masses is matched by vibrant color. The painter is also known to have produced a few portraits.
Dandré-Bardon attempted to solidify his position in the Paris art world following his return to the capital in 1734. In that year, the Archbishop Charles Vintimille (1655-1746) commissioned him to paint the pendants Death of the Virgin and The Visit to Saint Elizabeth (both, location unknown) for the Capuchin Church in the Marais. Before installation, these paintings were exhibited in the Salon of 1734. Upon the submission in 1735 of Tullia Running Her Chariot over the Body of Her Father (Montpellier, Musée Fabre), he was received into the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. Only a year later, he was made professor.
During a period when there was little demand for history painting from royal or private sources, Dandré-Bardon found patronage in the church. Through his association with the archbishop of Paris, he completed a major commission for the order of the Daughters of Saint Thomas de Villeneuve, in which he represented the founder of the order performing good works (Neuilly-sur-Seine, Daughters of Saint Thomas de Villeneuve). The paucity of commissions for historical scenes, however, led the artist to return to Aix, where he remained for the following decade, the most active of his career. Several of the large decorative schemes that he painted soon after he arrived in his birthplace--for the Société des Concerts and for the university--have been almost entirely lost. Dandré-Bardon devoted the five years between 1744 to 1749 to the decoration of the Salle des Actes at the university with four historical and two allegorical works, including another version of Christ on the Cross (lost) as well as the allegorical figure of Theology (Aix-en-Provence, Saint-Jean de Malte). During the same period, the artist completed a variety of religious commissions for the parish churches around Aix, including The Miracle of Saint Heldrad and the altarpiece Saint Crépin and Saint Crépinen (both Lambesc, Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire). Saint Jacques Interceding with the Virgin on Behalf of the Souls in Purgatory, in the same church, is one of his most lyrically beautiful works, employing a strikingly Venetian palette of pinks, yellows, and blues and demonstrates the painter's mastery in rendering different effects of light.
Over the last years of his life, Dandré-Bardon increasingly became engaged in the administration of academic organizations and in his official duties. At the same time that he accepted the post of controller of the decoration of the Royal Galleries in 1748, Dandré-Bardon was working on an Allegory of the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, known through preparatory drawings and an oil sketch (Aix-en-Provence, Musée Arnaud), but his composition apparently was never completed. Shortly thereafter, the painter returned to Paris to replace François Boucher (1703-1770) as professor in the Académie royale, resuming his life as an academician and advancing the movement to revive history painting in the grand manner. In spite of his dedication to history painting, Dandré-Bardon produced a few genre paintings for private collectors, the most notable of which is his series The Four Ages of Man (Aix-en-Provence, Musée Granet) painted in 1743-1744. His last known painting, The Death of Socrates (lost), was exhibited in the Salon of 1753 and heralded a new period of artistic seriousness. Dandré-Bardon was a founding member of the Marseille Académie, of which he became director in 1754. From this period on, he actively published a number of books and treatises, including the Traité de peinture (1765). When, ill health prevented him from painting, he continued to draw. He died in 1783.
[Frances Gage, in French Paintings of the Fifteenth through the EIghteenth Century, The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue, Washington, D.C., 2009: 127.]
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The National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC is a world-class art museum that displays one of the largest collections of masterpieces in the world including paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, and decorative arts from the 13th century to the present. The National Gallery of Art collection includes an extensive survey of works of American, British, Italian, Flemish, Spanish, Dutch, French and German art. With its prime location on the National Mall, surrounded by the Smithsonian Institution, visitors often think that the museum is a part of the Smithsonian. It is a separate entity and is supported by a combination of private and public funds. Admission is free. The museum offers a wide range of educational programs, lectures, guided tours, films, and concerts.
The original neoclassical building, the West Building includes European (13th-early 20th century) and American (18th-early 20th century) paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, and temporary exhibitions. The National Gallery of Art was opened to the public in 1941 with funds provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The original collection of masterpieces was provided by Mellon, who was the U. S. Secretary of the Treasury and ambassador to Britain in the 1930s. Mellon collected European masterpieces and many of the Gallery’s original works were once owned by Catherine II of Russia and purchased in the early 1930s by Mellon from the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad.
The core collection includes major works of art donated by Paul Mellon, Ailsa Mellon Bruce, Lessing J. Rosenwald, Samuel Henry Kress, Rush Harrison Kress, Peter Arrell Browne Widener, Joseph E. Widener, and Chester Dale. The Gallery's collection of paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, medals, and decorative arts traces the development of Western art from the Middle Ages to the present, including the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas and the largest mobile created by Alexander Calder.
The NGA's collection galleries and Sculpture Garden display European and American paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, and decorative arts. Paintings in the permanent collection date from the Middle Ages to the present. The Italian Renaissance collection includes two panels from Duccio's Maesta, the tondo of the Adoration of the Magi by Fra Angelico and Filippo Lippi, a Botticelli work on the same subject, Giorgione's Allendale Nativity, Giovanni Bellini's The Feast of the Gods, Ginevra de' Benci (the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas) and groups of works by Titian and Raphael.
The collections include paintings by many European masters, including a version of Saint Martin and the Beggar, by El Greco, and works by Matthias Grünewald, Cranach the Elder, Rogier van der Weyden, Albrecht Dürer, Frans Hals, Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, Francisco Goya, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, and Eugène Delacroix, among others. The collection of sculpture and decorative arts includes such works as the Chalice of Abbot Suger of St-Denis and a collection of work by Auguste Rodin and Edgar Degas. Other highlights of the permanent collection include the second of the two original sets of Thomas Cole's series of paintings titled The Voyage of Life, (the first set is at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute in Utica, New York) and the original version of Watson and the Shark by John Singleton Copley (two other versions are in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Detroit Institute of Arts).
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Gallery_of_Art
Andrew W. Mellon, who pledged both the resources to construct the National Gallery of Art as well as his high-quality art collection, is rightly known as the founder of the gallery. But his bequest numbered less than two hundred paintings and sculptures—not nearly enough to fill the gallery’s massive rooms. This, however, was a feature, not a failure of Mellon’s vision; he anticipated that the gallery eventually would be filled not only by his own collection, but also by additional donations from other private collectors. By design, then, it was both Andrew Mellon and those who followed his lead—among them, eight men and women known as the Founding Benefactors—to whom the gallery owes its premier reputation as a national art museum. At the gallery’s opening in 1941, President Roosevelt stated, “the dedication of this Gallery to a living past, and to a greater and more richly living future, is the measure of the earnestness of our intention that the freedom of the human spirit shall go on.”
www.doaks.org/resources/cultural-philanthropy/national-ga...
..
________________________________
The National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC is a world-class art museum that displays one of the largest collections of masterpieces in the world including paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, and decorative arts from the 13th century to the present. The National Gallery of Art collection includes an extensive survey of works of American, British, Italian, Flemish, Spanish, Dutch, French and German art. With its prime location on the National Mall, surrounded by the Smithsonian Institution, visitors often think that the museum is a part of the Smithsonian. It is a separate entity and is supported by a combination of private and public funds. Admission is free. The museum offers a wide range of educational programs, lectures, guided tours, films, and concerts.
The original neoclassical building, the West Building includes European (13th-early 20th century) and American (18th-early 20th century) paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, and temporary exhibitions. The National Gallery of Art was opened to the public in 1941 with funds provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The original collection of masterpieces was provided by Mellon, who was the U. S. Secretary of the Treasury and ambassador to Britain in the 1930s. Mellon collected European masterpieces and many of the Gallery’s original works were once owned by Catherine II of Russia and purchased in the early 1930s by Mellon from the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad.
The core collection includes major works of art donated by Paul Mellon, Ailsa Mellon Bruce, Lessing J. Rosenwald, Samuel Henry Kress, Rush Harrison Kress, Peter Arrell Browne Widener, Joseph E. Widener, and Chester Dale. The Gallery's collection of paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, sculpture, medals, and decorative arts traces the development of Western art from the Middle Ages to the present, including the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas and the largest mobile created by Alexander Calder.
The NGA's collection galleries and Sculpture Garden display European and American paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, and decorative arts. Paintings in the permanent collection date from the Middle Ages to the present. The Italian Renaissance collection includes two panels from Duccio's Maesta, the tondo of the Adoration of the Magi by Fra Angelico and Filippo Lippi, a Botticelli work on the same subject, Giorgione's Allendale Nativity, Giovanni Bellini's The Feast of the Gods, Ginevra de' Benci (the only painting by Leonardo da Vinci in the Americas) and groups of works by Titian and Raphael.
The collections include paintings by many European masters, including a version of Saint Martin and the Beggar, by El Greco, and works by Matthias Grünewald, Cranach the Elder, Rogier van der Weyden, Albrecht Dürer, Frans Hals, Rembrandt, Johannes Vermeer, Francisco Goya, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, and Eugène Delacroix, among others. The collection of sculpture and decorative arts includes such works as the Chalice of Abbot Suger of St-Denis and a collection of work by Auguste Rodin and Edgar Degas. Other highlights of the permanent collection include the second of the two original sets of Thomas Cole's series of paintings titled The Voyage of Life, (the first set is at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute in Utica, New York) and the original version of Watson and the Shark by John Singleton Copley (two other versions are in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Detroit Institute of Arts).
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Gallery_of_Art
Andrew W. Mellon, who pledged both the resources to construct the National Gallery of Art as well as his high-quality art collection, is rightly known as the founder of the gallery. But his bequest numbered less than two hundred paintings and sculptures—not nearly enough to fill the gallery’s massive rooms. This, however, was a feature, not a failure of Mellon’s vision; he anticipated that the gallery eventually would be filled not only by his own collection, but also by additional donations from other private collectors. By design, then, it was both Andrew Mellon and those who followed his lead—among them, eight men and women known as the Founding Benefactors—to whom the gallery owes its premier reputation as a national art museum. At the gallery’s opening in 1941, President Roosevelt stated, “the dedication of this Gallery to a living past, and to a greater and more richly living future, is the measure of the earnestness of our intention that the freedom of the human spirit shall go on.”
www.doaks.org/resources/cultural-philanthropy/national-ga...
.
Paper wrapper for Annibale Carracci's "Diverse figure al numero di ottanta" (Rome" Lodovico Grigniani, 1646); not contemporary
This relief was commissioned for the sacristy of the Santa Maria Maggiore. Inspired by contemporary paintings of the subject (particularly by Ludovico Carracci), Pietro Bernini's relief illustrates his virtuoso marble-carving ability and his exploitation of pictorial affects, more skills that he passed on to his son, the young Gianlorenzo. At the same time the relief is rooted in an approach to relief sculpture which differs little from the famous scenes of the life of the Virgin by the fourteenth-century Florentine sculpture Andrea Orcagna.
We find in this composition the sharp linear drapery style and the extreme tenseness of the figures that characterize Pietro's art, never entirely freed from the Mannerist limitations of his training. The work, however, is one of the earliest examples of the pictorial relief altarpieces that were to be popular during the 17th century.
Piacenza.
Sant'Antonio.
11thC basilica with origins in the 4th. Interior was modified in the 16th to 18th centuries.
There are frescoes by Camillo Gavasetti in the presbytery.
Wiki writes - "Camillo Gavasetti (1596 – in or after 1630) was a native of Modena, who flourished about the year 1626. He studied under his father, Stefano Gavasetti, a miniature painter and gilder, but he rather followed the Carracci. His principal works are at Piacenza, where he is better known than at Parma or Modena. He was engaged with Piarini in painting Scriptural subjects. At the presbytery of the Church of Sant'Antonino at Piacenza, is a fresco representing a subject from the Apocalypse, which was esteemed by Guercino the finest work of art in that city. He died young in 1628."
Annibale Carracci:
Der heilige Sebastian
(1583-1584).
Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister
This relief was commissioned for the sacristy of the Santa Maria Maggiore. Inspired by contemporary paintings of the subject (particularly by Ludovico Carracci), Pietro Bernini's relief illustrates his virtuoso marble-carving ability and his exploitation of pictorial affects, more skills that he passed on to his son, the young Gianlorenzo. At the same time the relief is rooted in an approach to relief sculpture which differs little from the famous scenes of the life of the Virgin by the fourteenth-century Florentine sculpture Andrea Orcagna.
We find in this composition the sharp linear drapery style and the extreme tenseness of the figures that characterize Pietro's art, never entirely freed from the Mannerist limitations of his training. The work, however, is one of the earliest examples of the pictorial relief altarpieces that were to be popular during the 17th century.
Piazza del Popolo is a famous square in Rome, Italy. The descriptions that follow rely heavily on Rick Steves' Rome (where his "La Dolce Vita" stroll starts) and Wikipedia.
We'll start with location. Piazza del Popolo is located just inside the Porta del Popolo (formerly Porta Flaminia). This was the northern entrance into medieval Rome.
Sidebar (already??): Porta Flaminia...marked the end of Via Flaminia, the ancient road that connected the Adriatic (going due north over the Apennines), and then along the Adriatic coast into central Europe.
There was once a German minister from Wittenberg who walked 700 miles down here in 1510 and came right through this gate...was shocked by the corruption he found in the city (an extension of the church), and promptly decided to begin a counterreformation. His name was Martin Luther.
I'm sure a handful of others have waked through these gates over time. Rome was the equivalent of Mecca for Christians and the pilgrims primarily arrived at this gate. There are a few more tourists than pilgrims at this point.
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Back to the story of the piazza...
History:
Before getting to the 1475 facelift from Pope Sixtus IV.
The most interesting history here is centered around the church immediately to your left when you walk through the Porta del Popolo. This is Santa Maria del Popolo.
The church was originally founded/created/formed by Pope Paschal II in 1099 A.D. (What we get to look at now is a result of the Sistine restoration of the square in the 1470s; more on that to follow.)
The formation of this church has as much to do with Imperial Roman history and legend as anything.
Emperor Nero, after committing suicide, was buried in the mausoleum of his family at the foot of the Pincian Hill (guess what hill that is directly behind the east fountain?).
There was a landslide at one point, and the Domitii Ahenobarbi went down for the count. On top of it, a rather impressive walnut tree grew. The walnut tree, magnificent as it was, apparently came laden with "evil spirits." This wasn't the best thing to have as a first impression for visitors to your fine town.
So, as Wikipedia explains, "On the Thursday after the third Sunday in Lent in 1099, the Pope organized the entire clergy and populace of Rome in one impressive procession that, with the crucifix at its head, went along the urban stretch of the Via Flaminia until it reached the infested place. There, Paschal II performed the rite of exorcism and then struck the walnut tree with a determined blow to its root, causing the evil spirits to burst forth, madly screaming. When the tree was removed, the remains of Nero were discovered among the ruins; the Pope ordered these thrown into the Tiber." ...and since then, we have ourselves a church. (Church records from 1099 until the restoration seem sparse, unfortunately.)
As for the church now, it has a "who's who" of Italian art. The famous Chigi Chapel, designed by Raphael...second on the left from the entrance...emphasized humanism and was inspired by the Pantheon. The Della Rovere Chapel -- immediately to the right of the entrance -- showcases 1400s realism with Pinturicchio's Nativity with St. Jerome. The Cerasi Chapel -- left of the main altar -- highlights Baroque art with Carracci's Assumption of Mary (center) with the two real highlights being the Caravaggio's on either side: Conversion of St. Paul (1601) is on the right, and Crucifixion of St. Peter is on the left.
The sad news, for anyone visiting between September 2023 and November 2024 (like me, in November 2023), is that you won't be able to see any of this. The church interior is undergoing a restoration.
Speaking of restorations, let's take an overall look at the piazza from just inside the Porta del Popolo.
Pope Sixtus IV, realizing that this square, after centuries of decline, wasn't making a grand first impression (or even a good one, apparently), established eminent domain so the church could steal the land, clear it of unsightly buildings, and improve this piazza. Bernini had a hand in one of the subsequent upkeep efforts (namely in the design of the "twin" churches directly in front of you, but the main layout at the moment is compliments of Giuseppe Valadier who, from 1811-22, designed this in the loose image of St. Peter's Square, with its neoclassical symmetry and oval shape.
At the center of it all is the Flaminio (Popolo) Obelisk. Three sides were carved by pharoah Sety I, with the final side by Ramses II. (Ramses is considered to be one of the most powerful pharoahs in Egyptian history -- if not the most famous. He ran Egypt from 1279-11 B.C.)
In 10 B.C. Emperor Augustus had this obelisk moved over and stuck right in the middle of Circus Maximus. It was finally moved over here to Piazza del Popolo in 1589 (during the "upgrade" of Pope Sixtus V).
Focus your gaze to the two seemingly identical churches beyond the obelisk. You're looking at Santa Maria di Montesanto (1679, on the left) and Santa Maria dei Miracoli (1681, on the right). They're small churches, due to space constrictions. They were begun by Carlo Rainaldi, but completely by Bernini and Carlo Fontana. If you look closely, these aren't perfect twins. Bernini had to make a few minor corrections to make them seem as similar as possible.
The two churches exist there as they are split by three important and ancient pilgrim routes (converging here in "the Trident/il Tridente"). From left to right, they are:
Via del Babuino (yeah, that means "baboon") opened as the Via Paulina in 1525. This one was a pilgrim's route to Santa Maria Maggiore & Saint John in Laterano, but now goes to Piazza di Spagna.
Via del Corso. This was one of ancient Rome's "main streets" and, at about 1.6 kilometers, connects the city gate here with Piazza Venezia (at the foot of Capitoline Hill near the Forum). Nowadays, it's lined with churches, the Piazza Colonna (about halfway down), and shopping. Having been planned in 220 B.C., this was basically part of Via Flaminia. This road has gone through a few name changes. "Corso" refers to its history as being a racetrack for riderless horses (corsa dei barbieri) during the Roman Carnival since the 15th century. After King Umberto I's assassination in 1900, this was changed to Corso Umberto I. In 1944, it was changed to Corso del Popolo and finally in 1946 back to...Via del Corso.
Via di Ripetta, on the right, was the road that would take you near the Vatican, after running you by the Mausoleum of Augustus on the Tiber.
Step forward towards the obelisk, and you'll see two fairly big fountains at the eastern and western edges of the piazza.
On the western (right) side, you'll see two fountains. These were created by Giovanni Ceccarini in the 1820s. On the west (right) end, you have the Fontana del Nettuno. On the east (left) end, at the base of the Pincian Hill, you have Rome between the Tiber and the Aniene. Directly above that, you can see the Terrazza del Pincio in the Villa Borghese Gardens.
That does it for descriptions. Last notes...if you want to enjoy Santa Maria del Popolo (after it reopens) in relative solitude, try coming before 8:00 a.m. More fun, though, is to do what the locals do: the passeggiata is a nightly occurrence. Locals come here to take their stroll, to see, and be seen. It's a good spot for night life, and this is a great starting point. Split the churches, walk down Via del Corso, and enjoy "La dolce vita," as Rick Steves would say.
Exclusive destination of "taste" where our discerning clients can find the traditional recipes of the Emilia Romagna’s cuisine in an atmosphere unparalleled in contact with masterpieces of Italian art.
This wonderful museum is among the highest expressions of the fifteenth-century painting and shows the wonderful frescoes of the school of the Carracci brothers.
The Chef, with a prestigious curriculum at major Restaurants, propose a traditional Bolognese menu flanked by innovative proposals
The combination of tangible reality with a visionary and spiritual atmosphere was one of the features that explain the fascination exerted by Murillo’s works, many of them extremely popular, which is why the Catholic Church used his images for the following three centuries. A fair number of his themes are not specifically described in the Bible and some, such as the scenes from the childhood of Christ and Saint John the Baptist, were his own inventions. As in this painting, Murillo portrayed complex theological concepts in easily understandable and sincere images that appealed immediately to the human emotions. The exquisite colours of this painting, with its very rich tonalities, and the manner in which the paint is applied illustrate how Murillo was a forerunner of 18th-century techniques. For this reason his style was enormously attractive to cultivated travellers such as Joseph Townsend, who states in his account of his stay in Spain that "no other Spaniard has equalled him in expression and sweetness". This is one of various works on Christ´s childhood and it has been one of Murillo´s best known paintings and one of the most popular with the Spanish public since it was first exhibited (1819) at the Museo del Prado. The anecdotic atmosphere of this religious image, in the style of genre painting, is reflected in the name by which it is known, The Children with the Shell, which was coined by Federico de Madrazo, director of the Prado, in the 1872 catalogue. Although these holy children display an idealised beauty that is absent from the children depicted in Murillo´s genre paintings, their gestures and expressions are very lifelike. The painting has always been admired for its special charm and for Murillo´s masterful achievement of fluidity and subtlety in the figures, which are bathed in a limpid, silvery light. Although it is not known who the first owner was, the painting was most likely painted for a private client rather than a religious institution, as Murillo´s religious images adapted well to the luxurious interiors of the devout and wealthy Sevillian faithful. Indeed, the painter created an art that was appropriate to household environments. Murillo´s religious works were collected by two of his main patrons, Justino de Neve and Nicolas Omazur, and their popularity among private owners is beyond all doubt following Kinkead´s research. Mayer noted a relationship between this composition and a print made after a painting by Guido Reni (Bartsch, no. 13), possibly inspired by Annibale Carracci. The Children with the Shell is a reflection of a popular form of piety that favoured representing Christ and Saint John the Baptist as children, placing emphasis on both their spirituality and human condition. In this case the theme contradicts the strict ecclesiastical doctrine since, as Francisco Pacheco pointed out in El arte de la pintura (1649), Christ and Saint John the Baptist, although cousins, did not meet until they were both adults, when the latter baptised Jesus in the river Jordan. The most outstanding feature of this anecdote is that it foreshadows in childhood an event that occurred in Christ´s adult life: his baptism by Saint John in the river Jordan. The Christ Child smiles and points towards the soft light emanating from the golden mist formed by the clouds into which the angels appear to merge. In the background dark, threatening storm clouds seem to predict the destiny of both Children. On Saint John´s cross, a ribbon in the manner of a scroll flutters with the inscription "ecce agnus dei", proclaiming the Christ Child as "lamb of God". By placing the lamb in the foreground staring at the two boys, Murillo emphasises its duality as symbol of Christ and favourite companion of any child, thereby placing the religious event in a domestic context.
2023_12_25 The Fountain of Neptune Bologna Emilia-Romagna Italy
Palazzo d'Accursio (W) - city hall and museum
The Fountain of Neptune (Italian: Fontana di Nettuno) is a monumental civic fountain located in the eponymous square, Piazza del Nettuno, next to Piazza Maggiore, in Bologna, Italy[1] The fountain is a model example of Mannerist taste of the Italian courtly elite in the mid-sixteenth century.
History
The construction of the fountain was commissioned by the Cardinal Legate Charles Borromeo, to symbolize the fortunate recent election of Borromeo's uncle as Pope Pius IV. To clear space for the fountain, an entire edifice had to be demolished.
The design and assembly of the fountain was completed by the Palermitan architect Tommaso Laureti in 1563. The fountain was completed in 1565.[2] The over-life-size bronze figure of the god Neptune was completed and fixed in place around 1566. The statue was an early design by Giambologna,[3] who had submitted a model for the Fountain of Neptune in Florence, but had lost the commission to Baccio Bandinelli.
Neptune Fountain has its base on three steps, on which it is situated a tank made of the local boulder and covered by marble of Verona. In the centre of the tank, there is a base where there are four Nereids holding their breasts, from which jets of water emerge. The base is decorated with pontifical emblems, ornaments that – connected to four cherubs – hold dolphins (which are allegorical representation of major rivers from the then-known corners of the world: the Ganges, the Nile, the Amazon River, and the Danube. In the centre of this base raises the majestic figure of the Neptune sculpted by Giambologna's; the statue is a typical expressions of the manneristic theatricality.
The Neptune stretches his left hand in a lordly gesture, appearing to be aiming to placate the waves; this posture is interpreted as symbolic exaltation of the new power of the Pope Pius IV: just as Neptune was the master of the seas, the Pope was the master of Bologna and of the world.
Inscriptions
On the four sides of the marble tank there are four inscriptions in Latin provide the background to the fountain's construction:
1. Fori Ornamento (to decorate the square);
2. Aere Publico (built thanks to public money);
3. Populi Commodo (built for the people);
4. MDLXIIII (built in 1564; the date is wrong though, since the fountain was officially finished in 1566).
The four main sources of political power for Bologna then are also inscribed on the base:
1. Pius IIII Pont. Max (Pope Pius IV)
2. Petrus Donatus Caesius Gubernator; (Governor Pier Donato Cesi)
3. Carolus Borromaeus Cardinalis; (Cardinal Carlo Borromeo)
4. S.P.Q.B. (Senatus Populusque Bonononiensis) (Senate and the People of Bologna)
Symbolism
The trident of the Neptune's statue inspired and it was used by Maserati brothers as emblem for their first car, the Maserati Tipo 26. The logo was realized in 1920 by one of the brothers, Mario Maserati, at the suggestion of a family friend, Marquis Diego de Sterlich. This is still today the logo of the Maserati car company [4]
The fountain and its sculpture are one of the most iconic symbols of the city and references to them can be found in many symbols, commercials and logos. This includes the historical students' fraternity (Goliardia) "Excelsa Neptuni Balla", on whose emblem figure two tridents.
Exclusive destination of "taste" where our discerning clients can find the traditional recipes of the Emilia Romagna’s cuisine in an atmosphere unparalleled in contact with masterpieces of Italian art.
This wonderful museum is among the highest expressions of the fifteenth-century painting and shows the wonderful frescoes of the school of the Carracci brothers.
The Chef, with a prestigious curriculum at major Restaurants, propose a traditional Bolognese menu flanked by innovative proposals
Piazza del Popolo is a famous square in Rome, Italy. The descriptions that follow rely heavily on Rick Steves' Rome (where his "La Dolce Vita" stroll starts) and Wikipedia.
We'll start with location. Piazza del Popolo is located just inside the Porta del Popolo (formerly Porta Flaminia). This was the northern entrance into medieval Rome.
Sidebar (already??): Porta Flaminia...marked the end of Via Flaminia, the ancient road that connected the Adriatic (going due north over the Apennines), and then along the Adriatic coast into central Europe.
There was once a German minister from Wittenberg who walked 700 miles down here in 1510 and came right through this gate...was shocked by the corruption he found in the city (an extension of the church), and promptly decided to begin a counterreformation. His name was Martin Luther.
I'm sure a handful of others have waked through these gates over time. Rome was the equivalent of Mecca for Christians and the pilgrims primarily arrived at this gate. There are a few more tourists than pilgrims at this point.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Back to the story of the piazza...
History:
Before getting to the 1475 facelift from Pope Sixtus IV.
The most interesting history here is centered around the church immediately to your left when you walk through the Porta del Popolo. This is Santa Maria del Popolo.
The church was originally founded/created/formed by Pope Paschal II in 1099 A.D. (What we get to look at now is a result of the Sistine restoration of the square in the 1470s; more on that to follow.)
The formation of this church has as much to do with Imperial Roman history and legend as anything.
Emperor Nero, after committing suicide, was buried in the mausoleum of his family at the foot of the Pincian Hill (guess what hill that is directly behind the east fountain?).
There was a landslide at one point, and the Domitii Ahenobarbi went down for the count. On top of it, a rather impressive walnut tree grew. The walnut tree, magnificent as it was, apparently came laden with "evil spirits." This wasn't the best thing to have as a first impression for visitors to your fine town.
So, as Wikipedia explains, "On the Thursday after the third Sunday in Lent in 1099, the Pope organized the entire clergy and populace of Rome in one impressive procession that, with the crucifix at its head, went along the urban stretch of the Via Flaminia until it reached the infested place. There, Paschal II performed the rite of exorcism and then struck the walnut tree with a determined blow to its root, causing the evil spirits to burst forth, madly screaming. When the tree was removed, the remains of Nero were discovered among the ruins; the Pope ordered these thrown into the Tiber." ...and since then, we have ourselves a church. (Church records from 1099 until the restoration seem sparse, unfortunately.)
As for the church now, it has a "who's who" of Italian art. The famous Chigi Chapel, designed by Raphael...second on the left from the entrance...emphasized humanism and was inspired by the Pantheon. The Della Rovere Chapel -- immediately to the right of the entrance -- showcases 1400s realism with Pinturicchio's Nativity with St. Jerome. The Cerasi Chapel -- left of the main altar -- highlights Baroque art with Carracci's Assumption of Mary (center) with the two real highlights being the Caravaggio's on either side: Conversion of St. Paul (1601) is on the right, and Crucifixion of St. Peter is on the left.
The sad news, for anyone visiting between September 2023 and November 2024 (like me, in November 2023), is that you won't be able to see any of this. The church interior is undergoing a restoration.
Speaking of restorations, let's take an overall look at the piazza from just inside the Porta del Popolo.
Pope Sixtus IV, realizing that this square, after centuries of decline, wasn't making a grand first impression (or even a good one, apparently), established eminent domain so the church could steal the land, clear it of unsightly buildings, and improve this piazza. Bernini had a hand in one of the subsequent upkeep efforts (namely in the design of the "twin" churches directly in front of you, but the main layout at the moment is compliments of Giuseppe Valadier who, from 1811-22, designed this in the loose image of St. Peter's Square, with its neoclassical symmetry and oval shape.
At the center of it all is the Flaminio (Popolo) Obelisk. Three sides were carved by pharoah Sety I, with the final side by Ramses II. (Ramses is considered to be one of the most powerful pharoahs in Egyptian history -- if not the most famous. He ran Egypt from 1279-11 B.C.)
In 10 B.C. Emperor Augustus had this obelisk moved over and stuck right in the middle of Circus Maximus. It was finally moved over here to Piazza del Popolo in 1589 (during the "upgrade" of Pope Sixtus V).
Focus your gaze to the two seemingly identical churches beyond the obelisk. You're looking at Santa Maria di Montesanto (1679, on the left) and Santa Maria dei Miracoli (1681, on the right). They're small churches, due to space constrictions. They were begun by Carlo Rainaldi, but completely by Bernini and Carlo Fontana. If you look closely, these aren't perfect twins. Bernini had to make a few minor corrections to make them seem as similar as possible.
The two churches exist there as they are split by three important and ancient pilgrim routes (converging here in "the Trident/il Tridente"). From left to right, they are:
Via del Babuino (yeah, that means "baboon") opened as the Via Paulina in 1525. This one was a pilgrim's route to Santa Maria Maggiore & Saint John in Laterano, but now goes to Piazza di Spagna.
Via del Corso. This was one of ancient Rome's "main streets" and, at about 1.6 kilometers, connects the city gate here with Piazza Venezia (at the foot of Capitoline Hill near the Forum). Nowadays, it's lined with churches, the Piazza Colonna (about halfway down), and shopping. Having been planned in 220 B.C., this was basically part of Via Flaminia. This road has gone through a few name changes. "Corso" refers to its history as being a racetrack for riderless horses (corsa dei barbieri) during the Roman Carnival since the 15th century. After King Umberto I's assassination in 1900, this was changed to Corso Umberto I. In 1944, it was changed to Corso del Popolo and finally in 1946 back to...Via del Corso.
Via di Ripetta, on the right, was the road that would take you near the Vatican, after running you by the Mausoleum of Augustus on the Tiber.
Step forward towards the obelisk, and you'll see two fairly big fountains at the eastern and western edges of the piazza.
On the western (right) side, you'll see two fountains. These were created by Giovanni Ceccarini in the 1820s. On the west (right) end, you have the Fontana del Nettuno. On the east (left) end, at the base of the Pincian Hill, you have Rome between the Tiber and the Aniene. Directly above that, you can see the Terrazza del Pincio in the Villa Borghese Gardens.
That does it for descriptions. Last notes...if you want to enjoy Santa Maria del Popolo (after it reopens) in relative solitude, try coming before 8:00 a.m. More fun, though, is to do what the locals do: the passeggiata is a nightly occurrence. Locals come here to take their stroll, to see, and be seen. It's a good spot for night life, and this is a great starting point. Split the churches, walk down Via del Corso, and enjoy "La dolce vita," as Rick Steves would say.
Piazza del Popolo is a famous square in Rome, Italy. The descriptions that follow rely heavily on Rick Steves' Rome (where his "La Dolce Vita" stroll starts) and Wikipedia.
We'll start with location. Piazza del Popolo is located just inside the Porta del Popolo (formerly Porta Flaminia). This was the northern entrance into medieval Rome.
Sidebar (already??): Porta Flaminia...marked the end of Via Flaminia, the ancient road that connected the Adriatic (going due north over the Apennines), and then along the Adriatic coast into central Europe.
There was once a German minister from Wittenberg who walked 700 miles down here in 1510 and came right through this gate...was shocked by the corruption he found in the city (an extension of the church), and promptly decided to begin a counterreformation. His name was Martin Luther.
I'm sure a handful of others have waked through these gates over time. Rome was the equivalent of Mecca for Christians and the pilgrims primarily arrived at this gate. There are a few more tourists than pilgrims at this point.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Back to the story of the piazza...
History:
Before getting to the 1475 facelift from Pope Sixtus IV.
The most interesting history here is centered around the church immediately to your left when you walk through the Porta del Popolo. This is Santa Maria del Popolo.
The church was originally founded/created/formed by Pope Paschal II in 1099 A.D. (What we get to look at now is a result of the Sistine restoration of the square in the 1470s; more on that to follow.)
The formation of this church has as much to do with Imperial Roman history and legend as anything.
Emperor Nero, after committing suicide, was buried in the mausoleum of his family at the foot of the Pincian Hill (guess what hill that is directly behind the east fountain?).
There was a landslide at one point, and the Domitii Ahenobarbi went down for the count. On top of it, a rather impressive walnut tree grew. The walnut tree, magnificent as it was, apparently came laden with "evil spirits." This wasn't the best thing to have as a first impression for visitors to your fine town.
So, as Wikipedia explains, "On the Thursday after the third Sunday in Lent in 1099, the Pope organized the entire clergy and populace of Rome in one impressive procession that, with the crucifix at its head, went along the urban stretch of the Via Flaminia until it reached the infested place. There, Paschal II performed the rite of exorcism and then struck the walnut tree with a determined blow to its root, causing the evil spirits to burst forth, madly screaming. When the tree was removed, the remains of Nero were discovered among the ruins; the Pope ordered these thrown into the Tiber." ...and since then, we have ourselves a church. (Church records from 1099 until the restoration seem sparse, unfortunately.)
As for the church now, it has a "who's who" of Italian art. The famous Chigi Chapel, designed by Raphael...second on the left from the entrance...emphasized humanism and was inspired by the Pantheon. The Della Rovere Chapel -- immediately to the right of the entrance -- showcases 1400s realism with Pinturicchio's Nativity with St. Jerome. The Cerasi Chapel -- left of the main altar -- highlights Baroque art with Carracci's Assumption of Mary (center) with the two real highlights being the Caravaggio's on either side: Conversion of St. Paul (1601) is on the right, and Crucifixion of St. Peter is on the left.
The sad news, for anyone visiting between September 2023 and November 2024 (like me, in November 2023), is that you won't be able to see any of this. The church interior is undergoing a restoration.
Speaking of restorations, let's take an overall look at the piazza from just inside the Porta del Popolo.
Pope Sixtus IV, realizing that this square, after centuries of decline, wasn't making a grand first impression (or even a good one, apparently), established eminent domain so the church could steal the land, clear it of unsightly buildings, and improve this piazza. Bernini had a hand in one of the subsequent upkeep efforts (namely in the design of the "twin" churches directly in front of you, but the main layout at the moment is compliments of Giuseppe Valadier who, from 1811-22, designed this in the loose image of St. Peter's Square, with its neoclassical symmetry and oval shape.
At the center of it all is the Flaminio (Popolo) Obelisk. Three sides were carved by pharoah Sety I, with the final side by Ramses II. (Ramses is considered to be one of the most powerful pharoahs in Egyptian history -- if not the most famous. He ran Egypt from 1279-11 B.C.)
In 10 B.C. Emperor Augustus had this obelisk moved over and stuck right in the middle of Circus Maximus. It was finally moved over here to Piazza del Popolo in 1589 (during the "upgrade" of Pope Sixtus V).
Focus your gaze to the two seemingly identical churches beyond the obelisk. You're looking at Santa Maria di Montesanto (1679, on the left) and Santa Maria dei Miracoli (1681, on the right). They're small churches, due to space constrictions. They were begun by Carlo Rainaldi, but completely by Bernini and Carlo Fontana. If you look closely, these aren't perfect twins. Bernini had to make a few minor corrections to make them seem as similar as possible.
The two churches exist there as they are split by three important and ancient pilgrim routes (converging here in "the Trident/il Tridente"). From left to right, they are:
Via del Babuino (yeah, that means "baboon") opened as the Via Paulina in 1525. This one was a pilgrim's route to Santa Maria Maggiore & Saint John in Laterano, but now goes to Piazza di Spagna.
Via del Corso. This was one of ancient Rome's "main streets" and, at about 1.6 kilometers, connects the city gate here with Piazza Venezia (at the foot of Capitoline Hill near the Forum). Nowadays, it's lined with churches, the Piazza Colonna (about halfway down), and shopping. Having been planned in 220 B.C., this was basically part of Via Flaminia. This road has gone through a few name changes. "Corso" refers to its history as being a racetrack for riderless horses (corsa dei barbieri) during the Roman Carnival since the 15th century. After King Umberto I's assassination in 1900, this was changed to Corso Umberto I. In 1944, it was changed to Corso del Popolo and finally in 1946 back to...Via del Corso.
Via di Ripetta, on the right, was the road that would take you near the Vatican, after running you by the Mausoleum of Augustus on the Tiber.
Step forward towards the obelisk, and you'll see two fairly big fountains at the eastern and western edges of the piazza.
On the western (right) side, you'll see two fountains. These were created by Giovanni Ceccarini in the 1820s. On the west (right) end, you have the Fontana del Nettuno. On the east (left) end, at the base of the Pincian Hill, you have Rome between the Tiber and the Aniene. Directly above that, you can see the Terrazza del Pincio in the Villa Borghese Gardens.
That does it for descriptions. Last notes...if you want to enjoy Santa Maria del Popolo (after it reopens) in relative solitude, try coming before 8:00 a.m. More fun, though, is to do what the locals do: the passeggiata is a nightly occurrence. Locals come here to take their stroll, to see, and be seen. It's a good spot for night life, and this is a great starting point. Split the churches, walk down Via del Corso, and enjoy "La dolce vita," as Rick Steves would say.