Bartolommeo Bandinelli
Encyclopedia
Bartolommeo Bandinelli, actually Bartolommeo Brandini (17 October 1493 – shortly before 7 February 1560), was a Renaissance
Italian
sculptor, draughtsman and painter.
Bandinelli was the son of a prominent Florentine
goldsmith
, and first apprenticed in his shop. As a boy, he was apprenticed under Giovanni Francesco Rustici
, a sculptor friend of Leonardo da Vinci
. Among his earliest works was a Saint Jerome in wax, made for Giuliano de' Medici
, identified as Bandinelli's by John Pope-Hennessy
Giorgio Vasari
, a former pupil in Bandinelli's workshop, claimed Bandinelli was driven by jealousy of Benvenuto Cellini
and Michelangelo
; and recounts that:
Bandinelli's lifelong obsession with Michelangelo is a recurring theme in assessments of his career.
Bandinelli was a leader in the group of Florentine Mannerists who were inspired by the revived interest in Donatello
attendant on the installation of Donatello's bas-relief panels for the pulpit in San Lorenzo
, 1515. The artist presented his relief of the Deposition to Charles V at Genoa in 1529; though the relief has been lost, a bronze from it by Antonio Susini in 1600 (Musée du Louvre) shows the decisive inspiration of Donatello's emotional pitch and intensity; Bandinelli made several drawings of the Donatello reliefs, though later in life he disparaged them in a letter to Cosimo I de' Medici.
His sculptures have never inspired the admiration given those of Michelangelo, specially the colossal (5.05 m) marble group of Hercules and Cacus
(completed in 1534) in the Piazza della Signoria
, Florence, and Adam and Eve in the Museo Nazionale del Bargello, which both stand within sight of some of Michelangelo's masterworks. Vasari said of him "He did nothing but make bozzetti and finished little", and modern commentators have remarked on the vitality of Bandinelli's terracotta models contrasted with the finished marbles: "all the freshness of his first approach to a subject was lost in the laborious execution in marble... A brilliant draughtsman and excellent small-scale sculptor, he had a morbid fascination for colossi which he was ill-equipped to execute. His failure as a sculptor on a grand scale was accentuated by his desire to imitate Michelangelo."
Hercules and Cacus was commissioned by the Medici
pope Clement VII, who had been shown a wax model. The supplied block of Carrara
marble was not big enough to execute Bandinelli's wax model. He had to make new wax models, one of which was chosen by the pope as the final draft. Bandinelli had already carved the sculpture as far as the abdomen of Hercules, when during the 1527 Sack of Rome
, the pope was taken prisoner. Meanwhile, in Florence, republican enemies of the Medici took advantage of the chaos to exile Ippolito de' Medici
. Bandinelli, a supporter of the Medici, was also exiled. In 1530 Emperor Charles V
retook Florence after a long siege. Pope Clement VII subsequently installed his illegitimate son Alessandro de' Medici as duke of Tuscany. Bandinelli then returned to Florence and continue work on the statue till completed in 1534, and transported from the Opera del Duomo to its present marble pedestal
. But from the moment it was unveiled, it faced ridicule; Cellini
compared the ponderous group to 'a sac full of melons'. Afterwards, the Bandinelli tried to sabotage Cellini's career. The statue was restored between February and April 1994.
Bandinelli's drawings, which have in the past masqueraded as Michelangelos in connoisseurs' collections, have come into their own in the later twentieth century.
Among Bandinelli's pupils were Giorgio Vasari
and Francesco de' Rossi (Il Salviati)
. His sons Clemente Bandinelli, a collaborator in Baccio's studio, and Michelangelo Bandinelli were also sculptors.
A youthful portrait by Andrea del Sarto
ca 1517 is conserved at the Uffizi
.
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
sculptor, draughtsman and painter.
Biography
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
goldsmith
Goldsmith
A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Since ancient times the techniques of a goldsmith have evolved very little in order to produce items of jewelry of quality standards. In modern times actual goldsmiths are rare...
, and first apprenticed in his shop. As a boy, he was apprenticed under Giovanni Francesco Rustici
Giovanni Francesco Rustici
Giovanni Francesco Rustici was an Italian Renaissance painter and sculptor.He was born into a noble family of Florence, with an independent income...
, a sculptor friend of Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...
. Among his earliest works was a Saint Jerome in wax, made for Giuliano de' Medici
Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici
Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici was an Italian nobleman, one of three sons of Lorenzo the Magnificent.-Biography:He was born in Florence, Italy. His brothers were Piero and Giovanni de' Medici....
, identified as Bandinelli's by John Pope-Hennessy
Giorgio Vasari
Giorgio Vasari
Giorgio Vasari was an Italian painter, writer, historian, and architect, who is famous today for his biographies of Italian artists, considered the ideological foundation of art-historical writing.-Biography:...
, a former pupil in Bandinelli's workshop, claimed Bandinelli was driven by jealousy of Benvenuto Cellini
Benvenuto Cellini
Benvenuto Cellini was an Italian goldsmith, sculptor, painter, soldier and musician, who also wrote a famous autobiography. He was one of the most important artists of Mannerism.-Youth:...
and Michelangelo
Michelangelo
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni , commonly known as Michelangelo, was an Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, poet, and engineer who exerted an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art...
; and recounts that:
Bandinelli's lifelong obsession with Michelangelo is a recurring theme in assessments of his career.
Bandinelli was a leader in the group of Florentine Mannerists who were inspired by the revived interest in Donatello
Donatello
Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi , also known as Donatello, was an early Renaissance Italian artist and sculptor from Florence...
attendant on the installation of Donatello's bas-relief panels for the pulpit in San Lorenzo
Basilica di San Lorenzo di Firenze
The Basilica di San Lorenzo is one of the largest churches of Florence, Italy, situated at the centre of the city’s main market district, and the burial place of all the principal members of the Medici family from Cosimo il Vecchio to Cosimo III...
, 1515. The artist presented his relief of the Deposition to Charles V at Genoa in 1529; though the relief has been lost, a bronze from it by Antonio Susini in 1600 (Musée du Louvre) shows the decisive inspiration of Donatello's emotional pitch and intensity; Bandinelli made several drawings of the Donatello reliefs, though later in life he disparaged them in a letter to Cosimo I de' Medici.
His sculptures have never inspired the admiration given those of Michelangelo, specially the colossal (5.05 m) marble group of Hercules and Cacus
Hercules and Cacus
The white marble sculpture Hercules and Cacus is to the right of the entrance of the Palazzo Vecchio in the Piazza della Signoria, Florence, Italy....
(completed in 1534) in the Piazza della Signoria
Piazza della Signoria
Piazza della Signoria is an L-shaped square in front of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, Italy. It was named after the Palazzo della Signoria, also called Palazzo Vecchio....
, Florence, and Adam and Eve in the Museo Nazionale del Bargello, which both stand within sight of some of Michelangelo's masterworks. Vasari said of him "He did nothing but make bozzetti and finished little", and modern commentators have remarked on the vitality of Bandinelli's terracotta models contrasted with the finished marbles: "all the freshness of his first approach to a subject was lost in the laborious execution in marble... A brilliant draughtsman and excellent small-scale sculptor, he had a morbid fascination for colossi which he was ill-equipped to execute. His failure as a sculptor on a grand scale was accentuated by his desire to imitate Michelangelo."
Hercules and Cacus was commissioned by the Medici
Medici
The House of Medici or Famiglia de' Medici was a political dynasty, banking family and later royal house that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the late 14th century. The family originated in the Mugello region of the Tuscan countryside,...
pope Clement VII, who had been shown a wax model. The supplied block of Carrara
Carrara
Carrara is a city and comune in the province of Massa-Carrara , notable for the white or blue-grey marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione River, some west-northwest of Florence....
marble was not big enough to execute Bandinelli's wax model. He had to make new wax models, one of which was chosen by the pope as the final draft. Bandinelli had already carved the sculpture as far as the abdomen of Hercules, when during the 1527 Sack of Rome
Sack of Rome
The city of Rome has been sacked on several occasions. Among the most famous:*Battle of the Allia – Rome is sacked by the Gauls after the Battle of the Allia*Sack of Rome – Rome is sacked by Alaric, King of the Visigoths...
, the pope was taken prisoner. Meanwhile, in Florence, republican enemies of the Medici took advantage of the chaos to exile Ippolito de' Medici
Ippolito de' Medici
Ippolito de' Medici was the illegitimate only son of Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici.Ippolito was born in Urbino. His father died when he was only five , and he was subsequently raised by his uncle Pope Leo X and his cousin Giulio.When Giulio de' Medici was elected pope as Clement VII, Ippolito...
. Bandinelli, a supporter of the Medici, was also exiled. In 1530 Emperor Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
retook Florence after a long siege. Pope Clement VII subsequently installed his illegitimate son Alessandro de' Medici as duke of Tuscany. Bandinelli then returned to Florence and continue work on the statue till completed in 1534, and transported from the Opera del Duomo to its present marble pedestal
Pedestal
Pedestal is a term generally applied to the support of a statue or a vase....
. But from the moment it was unveiled, it faced ridicule; Cellini
Benvenuto Cellini
Benvenuto Cellini was an Italian goldsmith, sculptor, painter, soldier and musician, who also wrote a famous autobiography. He was one of the most important artists of Mannerism.-Youth:...
compared the ponderous group to 'a sac full of melons'. Afterwards, the Bandinelli tried to sabotage Cellini's career. The statue was restored between February and April 1994.
Bandinelli's drawings, which have in the past masqueraded as Michelangelos in connoisseurs' collections, have come into their own in the later twentieth century.
Among Bandinelli's pupils were Giorgio Vasari
Giorgio Vasari
Giorgio Vasari was an Italian painter, writer, historian, and architect, who is famous today for his biographies of Italian artists, considered the ideological foundation of art-historical writing.-Biography:...
and Francesco de' Rossi (Il Salviati)
Francesco de' Rossi (Il Salviati)
Francesco de' Rossi was an Italian Mannerist painter from Florence, also active in Rome. He is known by many names, prominently the adopted name Francesco Salviati or as Il Salviati, but also Francesco Rossi and Cecchino del Salviati.-Biography:Salviati was born and died in Florence...
. His sons Clemente Bandinelli, a collaborator in Baccio's studio, and Michelangelo Bandinelli were also sculptors.
Selected works
Baccio Bandinelli's works include:- copy of LaocoonLaocoönLaocoön the son of Acoetes is a figure in Greek and Roman mythology.-History:Laocoön is a Trojan priest of Poseidon , whose rules he had defied, either by marrying and having sons, or by having committed an impiety by making love with his wife in the presence of a cult image in a sanctuary...
, at the time in the Cortile del BelvedereCortile del BelvedereThe Cortile del Belvedere, the Belvedere courtyard, designed by Donato Bramante from 1506 onwards, was a major architectural work of the High Renaissance at the Vatican Palace in Rome; its concept and details reverberating in courtyard design, formalized piazzas and garden plans throughout Western...
, commissioned by Pope Leo XPope Leo XPope Leo X , born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, was the Pope from 1513 to his death in 1521. He was the last non-priest to be elected Pope. He is known for granting indulgences for those who donated to reconstruct St. Peter's Basilica and his challenging of Martin Luther's 95 Theses...
as a gift to François IFrancis I of FranceFrancis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...
. Bandinelli boasted that he would exceed the original, and when he was finished, after a hiatus during the pontificate of Adrian VIPope Adrian VIPope Adrian VI , born Adriaan Florenszoon Boeyens, served as Pope from 9 January 1522 until his death some 18 months later...
, the Medici Pope Clement VIIPope Clement VIIClement VII , born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici, was a cardinal from 1513 to 1523 and was Pope from 1523 to 1534.-Early life:...
could not bear to part with it, sent some antiquities to the King of France in its stead, and sent Baccio's Laocoon to Florence. It remains at the UffiziUffiziThe Uffizi Gallery , is a museum in Florence, Italy. It is one of the oldest and most famous art museums of the Western world.-History:...
. - Tombs of the MediciMediciThe House of Medici or Famiglia de' Medici was a political dynasty, banking family and later royal house that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the late 14th century. The family originated in the Mugello region of the Tuscan countryside,...
popes Leo XPope Leo XPope Leo X , born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, was the Pope from 1513 to his death in 1521. He was the last non-priest to be elected Pope. He is known for granting indulgences for those who donated to reconstruct St. Peter's Basilica and his challenging of Martin Luther's 95 Theses...
and Clement VIIPope Clement VIIClement VII , born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici, was a cardinal from 1513 to 1523 and was Pope from 1523 to 1534.-Early life:...
in Santa Maria sopra MinervaSanta Maria sopra MinervaThe Basilica of Saint Mary Above Minerva is a titular minor basilica and one of the most important churches of the Roman Catholic Dominican order in Rome, Italy. The church, located in the Piazza della Minerva in the Campus Martius region, is considered the only Gothic church in Rome. It houses...
(1536–41). - Bust of Cosimo I de' Medici (c. 1539-40) (Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of ArtThe Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, acc. no. 1987.280) - Monument to Giovanni delle Bande Nere (1540–54), a seated figure on a magnificent pedestal, in piazza San Lorenzo, Florence
- Pietà in the Basilica della Santissima AnnunziataBasilica della Santissima Annunziata di FirenzeThe Basilica della Santissima Annunziata is a Roman Catholic minor basilica in Florence, Italy, the mother church of the Servite order. It is located at the northeastern side of the Piazza Santissima Annunziata....
, Florence, where Bandinelli portrayed himself in the figure of Joseph of Arimathea. Bandinelli is buried in the chapel, with his wife Giacoma Doni.
- Ceres and Apollo (1552–1556) for niches in the façade of BuontalentiBernardo BuontalentiBernardo Buontalenti, byname of Bernardo Delle Girandole was an Italian stage designer, architect, theatrical designer, military engineer and artist.-Biography:Buontalenti was born in Florence....
's grotto in the Boboli GardensBoboli GardensThe Boboli Gardens are a park in Florence, Italy, that is home to a collection of sculptures dating from the 16th through the 18th centuries, with some Roman antiquities.-History and layout:... - Orpheus for Palazzo Vecchio, now in the courtyard of the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi. One of Bandinelli's few signed works.
- Works for the DuomoSanta Maria del FioreThe Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore is the cathedral church of Florence, Italy. The Duomo, as it is ordinarily called, was begun in 1296 in the Gothic style to the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi...
, Florence, including the high altar and its Adam and Eve (1551), now in the BargelloBargelloThe Bargello, also known as the Bargello Palace or Palazzo del Popolo is a former barracks and prison, now an art museum, in Florence, Italy.-Terminology:...
and Pietà now in the crypt of Santa Croce; much-praised bas-reliefs made for the enclosure of the choir, designed by the architect Giuliano di Baccio d'Angnolo (1555), now in the Museo dell'Opera del DuomoMuseo dell'Opera del Duomo (Florence)The Museo dell'Opera del Duomo in Florence, Italy is a museum containing many of the original works of art created for the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, the cathedral of Florence. The museum is located just east of the Duomo, near its apse...
; Saint Peter, one of eight apostles by various sculptors in the piers of the crossing. - Works in Palazzo VecchioPalazzo VecchioThe Palazzo Vecchio is the town hall of Florence, Italy. This massive, Romanesque, crenellated fortress-palace is among the most impressive town halls of Tuscany...
, including, in the Audience Hall, a statue of Grand Duke Cosimo I de' Medici and one of Pope Leo X blessing (finished after Bandinelli's death by Vincenzo de' Rossi) - God the Father (1549) in Santa Croce cloister
- "Statua del Gigante", outside Carrara CathedralCarrara Cathedralthumb|250px|Façade of the Cathedral.thumb|250px|Side view.The Carrara Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church in Carrara, northern Italy. Nearly all the exterior is covered by local Carrara marble.-History:...
. - In the Bargello are also a number of lesser works: Noah (bas-relief), portrait busts of Eleonora di Toledo and Cosimo I de' Medici, Venus, Leda, Hercules, Bacchus Cleopatra and a portrait bust of an unknown man.
A youthful portrait by Andrea del Sarto
Andrea del Sarto
Andrea del Sarto was an Italian painter from Florence, whose career flourished during the High Renaissance and early Mannerism. Though highly regarded during his lifetime as an artist senza errori , his renown was eclipsed after his death by that of his contemporaries, Leonardo da Vinci,...
ca 1517 is conserved at the Uffizi
Uffizi
The Uffizi Gallery , is a museum in Florence, Italy. It is one of the oldest and most famous art museums of the Western world.-History:...
.
See also
- Portrait of a Lady known as Smeralda BandinelliPortrait of a Lady known as Smeralda BandinelliThe Portrait of Smeralda Brandini is a tempera on panel painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Sandro Botticelli of about 1475, in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London The Portrait of Smeralda Brandini is a tempera on panel painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Sandro Botticelli of about...
by Botticelli (Baccio's grandmother)
Further reading
- Louis A. Waldman, Baccio Bandinelli and Art at the Medici Court: A Corpus of Early Modern Sources (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 2004).
- Paola Barocchi, ed. Scritti d'arte del Cinquecento. (Milan: Ricciardi, 1974. (pp 1359–1411: Baccio Bandinelli: Il Memoriale)
- Roger Ward, ed. Baccio Bandinelli (1493-1560). (Cambridge: Fitzwilliam Museum) 1988. Exhibition catalogue of seventy-four Bandinelli drawings. ISBN 0-914160-06-0