Ludovico Carracci
Encyclopedia
Ludovico Carracci (21 April 1555 – 13 November 1619) was an Italian
, early-Baroque
painter, etcher, and printmaker born in Bologna
.
Ludovico himself apprenticed under Prospero Fontana
in Bologna
and traveled to Florence
, Parma
, and Venice
, before returning to his hometown. Along with his cousins Annibale
and Agostino Carracci
, Ludovico in 1585 was a founder and director (caposindaco) of the so-called Eclectic
Academy of painting (also called the Accademia degli Incamminati
), which in reality was a studio with apprenticed assistants. This studio however propelled a number of Emilian artists to pre-eminence in Rome and elsewhere, and singularly helped encourage the so-called Bolognese School
) of the late 16th century, which included Albani
, Guercino, Sacchi
, Reni
, Lanfranco
and Domenichino
. The Carracci had their apprentice draw studies focused on observation of nature and natural poses, and use a bold scale in drawing figures. Ludovico specifically helped train Giacomo Cavedone
. The Carracci are credited with reinvigorating Italian art, especially fresco
art, which was subsumed with formalistic Mannerism
.
Carracci's own works are characterized by a strong mood invoked by broad gestures and flickering light that create spiritual emotion.
Ludovico Carracci died in Bologna in 1619.
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...
, early-Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
painter, etcher, and printmaker born in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
.
Ludovico himself apprenticed under Prospero Fontana
Prospero Fontana
Prospero Fontana was an Italian painter of the late Renaissance.-Biography:Fontana was born in Bologna, and became a pupil of Innocenzo da Imola. He afterwards worked for Perin del Vaga in the Palazzo Doria in Genoa. Towards 1550, it is reported that Michelangelo introduced him to Pope Julius III...
in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
and traveled to Florence
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....
, Parma
Parma
Parma is a city in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna famous for its ham, its cheese, its architecture and the fine countryside around it. This is the home of the University of Parma, one of the oldest universities in the world....
, and Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, before returning to his hometown. Along with his cousins Annibale
Annibale Carracci
Annibale Carracci was an Italian Baroque painter.-Early career:Annibale Carracci was born in Bologna, and in all likelihood first apprenticed within his family...
and Agostino Carracci
Agostino Carracci
Agostino Carracci was an Italian painter and printmaker. He was the brother of the more famous Annibale and cousin of Lodovico Carracci....
, Ludovico in 1585 was a founder and director (caposindaco) of the so-called Eclectic
Eclecticism in art
Eclecticism is a kind of mixed style in the fine arts: "the borrowing of a variety of styles from different sources and combining them" . Significantly, Eclecticism hardly ever constituted a specific style in art: it is characterized by the fact that it was not a particular style...
Academy of painting (also called the Accademia degli Incamminati
Accademia degli Incamminati
The Accademia degli Incamminati was one of the first art academies in Italy. It was originally created around 1580 in Bologna as the Accademia dei Desiderosi and was sometimes known as the Accademia dei Carracci after its founders the Carracci cousins , with Annibale heading the institution thanks...
), which in reality was a studio with apprenticed assistants. This studio however propelled a number of Emilian artists to pre-eminence in Rome and elsewhere, and singularly helped encourage the so-called Bolognese School
Bolognese School (painting)
The Bolognese School or the School of Bologna of painting flourished in Bologna, the capital of Emilia Romagna, between the 16th and 17th centuries in Italy, and rivalled Florence and Rome as the center of painting. Its most important representatives include the Carracci family, including Ludovico...
) of the late 16th century, which included Albani
Francesco Albani
Francesco Albani or Albano was an Italian Baroque painter.-Early years in Bologna:Born 1578 in Bologna, his father was a silk merchant who intended to instruct his son in the same trade; but by age twelve, Albani became an apprentice under the competent mannerist painter Denis Calvaert, where he...
, Guercino, Sacchi
Andrea Sacchi
Andrea Sacchi was an Italian painter of High Baroque Classicism, active in Rome. A generation of artists who shared his style of art include the painters Nicolas Poussin and Giovanni Battista Passeri, the sculptors Alessandro Algardi and François Duquesnoy, and the contemporary biographer Giovanni...
, Reni
Guido Reni
Guido Reni was an Italian painter of high-Baroque style.-Biography:Born in Bologna into a family of musicians, Guido Reni was the son of Daniele Reni and Ginevra de’ Pozzi. As a child of nine, he was apprenticed under the Bolognese studio of Denis Calvaert. Soon after, he was joined in that...
, Lanfranco
Giovanni Lanfranco
Giovanni Lanfranco was an Italian painter of the Baroque period.-Biography:Giovanni Gaspare Lanfranco was born in Parma, the third son of Stefano and Cornelia Lanfranchi, and was placed as a page in the household of Count Orazio Scotti...
and Domenichino
Domenico Zampieri
Domenico Zampieri was an Italian Baroque painter of the Bolognese School, or Carracci School, of painters.-Life:...
. The Carracci had their apprentice draw studies focused on observation of nature and natural poses, and use a bold scale in drawing figures. Ludovico specifically helped train Giacomo Cavedone
Giacomo Cavedone
Giacomo Cavedone , was an Italian Baroque painter of the Bolognese School.He belonged to the generation of Carracci-inspired or trained painters that included Giovanni Andrea Donducci ; Alessandro Tiarini, Lucio Massari, Leonello Spada and Lorenzo Garbieri...
. The Carracci are credited with reinvigorating Italian art, especially fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
art, which was subsumed with formalistic Mannerism
Mannerism
Mannerism is a period of European art that emerged from the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520. It lasted until about 1580 in Italy, when a more Baroque style began to replace it, but Northern Mannerism continued into the early 17th century throughout much of Europe...
.
Carracci's own works are characterized by a strong mood invoked by broad gestures and flickering light that create spiritual emotion.
Ludovico Carracci died in Bologna in 1619.
Further reading
- Babette Bohn Ludovico Carracci and the Art of Drawing Brepols 2004
- Allessandro Brogi Ludovico Carracci Bologna 2001
- Andrea Emiliani (ed.) Ludovico Carracci exh. cat. Bologna-FortWorth 1994 (with Essay and catalogue by Gail Feigenbaum)