LATE RENAISSANCE
The perfection of form achieved during the late Renaissance was the culmination of centuries-old aspirations.. Because artists could not expect, that they will surpass the most outstanding achievements of Michelangelo and Raphael, they had to go in a different direction. This is how Mannerism was born. It was a consciously intellectual direction., aiming at the destruction of the adopted rules, especially the distortion of the sense of scale and perspective. exaggerated emphasis on anatomical details. giving the characters bizarre poses and using unnaturally sharp colors.
An artist invariably classified as a Mannerist is Giulio Romano (Ok. 1492-1546), one of Rafael's most talented assistants, whose frescoes in palazzo del Te in Mantua, built by the artist himself, show his style in the most daring edition, especially in the painting The Fall of the Giants, occupying a separate room. Rosso Fiorentino played a leading role in the transplantation of Mannerism into Florentine soil. (1494-1540). with Jacopo Pontormo (1494-1556) and Agnolko Bronzino (1503-72). The most talented representative of this group was Pontormo, who operated an excellent drawing.. a skilled decorator and insightful, though a distant portraitist. Bronzino was an extremely prolific artist, but today only his portraits of monarchs and eminent personalities are liked, whose coolness and focus on beauty, and not on the outfit they were to become a model for official portraitists of the future centuries. Giorgio Vasari (1511-74). and Arezzo made many frescoes in Palazzo Vecchio, but now he is famous primarily as the creator of a series of artist biographies, which can be recognized as the nucleus of the history of art as a scientific discipline.
Another Florentine Mannerist, whose fame was ensured by his writings is the sculptor Benvenuto Cellini (1500-71). author of a juicy own life, which contains fascinating behind-the-scenes information about the art world of that time. Although Cellini was valued at many European courts, only a few of his sculptures have survived, all testify to the high artistry of the creator. In the Bust of Cosim I in Bargello you can see a departure from portrait realism towards a heroic image. His Perseus in the Loggia dei Lanzi is the worthy company of Judith Donatello, and completely distances the rival of the artist Baccio Bandinelli, who is sitting in the square below Hercules and Kakus. (1493-1560).
By far the most influential Florentine mannerist was Giambologna. (1529-1608). sculptor of French origin. His favorite material was bronze and he founded a great studio, where miniature replicas of his most important works were produced. These are usually fighting characters, which should be viewed from all sides, and not just admire from one point of view. His most famous image is Mercury, this work is a conscious rejection of the views of both Donatello and Michelangelo, and the figure seems to float in the air., challenging the boldest challenge to earthly attraction in the history of sculpture.
One of the most individualistic mannerists was Domenico Beccafumi (14846-1551). which was quite an unusual culmination of the Sienese painting tradition, although its emphasis on color was typical of the city's art. He was a master of decorative effect, as evidenced by the illusionist frescoes in Palazzo Pubblico and the great altars in the Sienese churches, on which there is a particular interest in chiaroscuro, perspective effects and depth of feelings. Parma's Francesco Permigianino (1503-40) has retained a touch of studied sophistication of Correggio. but his characters, often with excessively exposed hands and neck, are presented with in-depth internal analysis. His decoration of the Church of Santa Martia della Steccata embodies the Mannerist tendency to overloaded ornamentation and testifies to his fertile imagination..
Venice, as per usual, during the late Renaissance, she went her own way, not liking the variety of Mannerism grown elsewhere in Italy. Jacopo Tintoretto (1518-94) aimed at the ideal of combining Michelangelo's drawing with Titian's color scheme.. although the heroic style he developed bears only a superficial resemblance to the mannerisms of his masters. To increase the sense of drama, used a whole range of other methods: unusual points of view, elongation of the figure and unusual location of the main theme on the canvas. In his religious works, he used contemporary scenery and costumes., enhancing the spiritual impact of images.
A completely different artist was another leading Venetian painter of the time.. Paolo Veronese (1528-88). top-class decorator of large interiors. Some of his best works were to be included in the architectural setting, for example, in the church of San Sebastiano in Venice and Villa Barbara in Mase. Veronese transferred his passion for pomposity to easel paintings, melting in warm, luminous colors, and monumental figures are devoid of all gravitas. The artist exposed himself to the Inquisition by placing German soldiers (which gave rise to suspicions of Protestant sympathies) and other anachronistic and unnecessary details on its huge banquet stage (currently in the Venetian Academy), which was supposed to depict the Last Supper. Veronesea's reaction was to change the title to Feast in the House of the Levite.
Alessandro Vittoria (1525-1608). student Jacopo Sansovina, decorated Venetian churches with sculptures, which have much in common with Mannerist works in other Italian centers, but are based on classical formulas. Jacopo Bassano (151019-92) studied at Venice, but preferred to work in a provincial city, from whom he took his surname, where he was by far the most prominent representative of the painting dynasty. As the setting for his religious paintings, he chose the unembellished small-town and rural life of his country.. He also popularized the placement of animals and piles of fruits and vegetables in paintings – which was later eagerly undertaken by Northern European artists – as well as perfectly operated strong chiaroscuro and strong brushstrokes..
Another prominent artist operating away from the main centers was Federico Barocci. (1535-1612) of Urhino. He painted the paintings meticulously, and the soft rounded forms reflected the religious worldview propagated by the Counter-Reformation; his treatment of light and movement to some extent foreshadows Baroque art.