Martinengo Altarpiece
Encyclopedia
The Martinengo Altarpiece is a painting by the Italian
High Renaissance
painter Lorenzo Lotto
, finished in 1516. It is housed in the church of Santi Bartolomeo e Stefano, Bergamo
, northern Italy
.
The painting, the largest ever painted by Lotto, was once accompanied by a series of minor panels, which were dispersed in the following centuries and have been only partially identified.
, whose pendentives decorated with Mark and John the Evangelists. Two angels are watching from a balaustrade, perhaps inspired by Mantegna
's Camera degli Sposi. Two other angels fly over Mary holding her crown.
The interpretation of the numerous symbols of the picture is disputed. Some of the objects could be taken from Francesco Colonna's Hypnerotomachia Poliphili
, alluding to the rule of Venice
in Bergamo, of which Martinengo was a supporter. The inscription in the upper part, saying Divina Suave, would be a reference to Venice.
In the lower part, the Virgin sits on a throne having a zoomorphic base, whose lion paws are a reference to St. Mark's Lion, symbol of Venice. The lion is also peeping from behind the throne, on the left. There is a total of ten saints, including St. Alexander, eponymous of the donor, portrayed with a scintillating armor and, perhaps, with the face of Martinengo himself. His wife Barbara is also portrayed next to him, as the saint with the same name.
The two child angels in the low foreground are a typical element in Lotto's works.
The work is signed and dated "Laurentius / Lotus / M.D.XVI".
[modifica] Altri scomparti
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...
High Renaissance
High Renaissance
The expression High Renaissance, in art history, is a periodizing convention used to denote the apogee of the visual arts in the Italian Renaissance...
painter Lorenzo Lotto
Lorenzo Lotto
Lorenzo Lotto was a Northern Italian painter draughtsman and illustrator, traditionally placed in the Venetian school. He painted mainly altarpieces, religious subjects and portraits...
, finished in 1516. It is housed in the church of Santi Bartolomeo e Stefano, Bergamo
Bergamo
Bergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan...
, northern Italy
Northern Italy
Northern Italy is a wide cultural, historical and geographical definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the northern part of the Italian state, also referred as Settentrione or Alta Italia...
.
History
On 15 May 1516 Lotto was in Bergamo to sign a contract for a large altarpiece for the high altar of the church of San Bartolomeo, funded by Alessandro Martinengo Colleoni, who had chosen the church as the family's new burial place (the outstanding Colleoni Chapel is located nearby). It was finished three years later, as testified by the signature, and was paid 500 ducats.The painting, the largest ever painted by Lotto, was once accompanied by a series of minor panels, which were dispersed in the following centuries and have been only partially identified.
Description
The subject of the painting is a Holy Conversation, with the Virgin and the Child sitting on a throne surrounded by saints. The scene is set in a majestic architecture perhaps inspired by Bramante style. In the center, where the dome should be, is the tholobateTholobate
A tholobate or drum, in architecture, is the upright part of a building on which a dome is raised. It is generally in the shape of a cylinder or a polygonal prism....
, whose pendentives decorated with Mark and John the Evangelists. Two angels are watching from a balaustrade, perhaps inspired by Mantegna
Andrea Mantegna
Andrea Mantegna was an Italian painter, a student of Roman archeology, and son in law of Jacopo Bellini. Like other artists of the time, Mantegna experimented with perspective, e.g., by lowering the horizon in order to create a sense of greater monumentality...
's Camera degli Sposi. Two other angels fly over Mary holding her crown.
The interpretation of the numerous symbols of the picture is disputed. Some of the objects could be taken from Francesco Colonna's Hypnerotomachia Poliphili
Hypnerotomachia Poliphili
Hypnerotomachia Poliphili , called in English Poliphilo's Strife of Love in a Dream, is a romance said to be by Francesco Colonna and a famous example of early printing...
, alluding to the rule of Venice
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
in Bergamo, of which Martinengo was a supporter. The inscription in the upper part, saying Divina Suave, would be a reference to Venice.
In the lower part, the Virgin sits on a throne having a zoomorphic base, whose lion paws are a reference to St. Mark's Lion, symbol of Venice. The lion is also peeping from behind the throne, on the left. There is a total of ten saints, including St. Alexander, eponymous of the donor, portrayed with a scintillating armor and, perhaps, with the face of Martinengo himself. His wife Barbara is also portrayed next to him, as the saint with the same name.
The two child angels in the low foreground are a typical element in Lotto's works.
The work is signed and dated "Laurentius / Lotus / M.D.XVI".
Secondary panels
The following panels, located in other places, are usually associated to the work:[modifica] Altri scomparti
- Angel with Sceptre and a Globe (cymatiumCymatiumCymatium, a molding on the cornice of some classical buildings. Sometimes decorated with an anthemion. It is characteristic of Ionic columns and can appear as part of the entablature, the epistylium, and the capital....
), 46x155 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest - Martyrdom of St. Stephen (predella), 51x97 cm, Accademia CarraraAccademia CarraraThe Accademia Carrara is an art gallery and an academy of fine arts in Bergamo, Italy.-History:The origins of the art gallery lie with the Count Giacomo Carrara, a wealthy collector and patron of the arts, who left a generous legacy to the city of Bergamo at the end of the 18th century.After the...
, Bergamo - Deposition of Christ (predella), 51x97 cm, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo
- Miracle of St. Dominic (predella), 51x97 cm, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo
- Martyrdom of St. Alexander (tondo, canvas), 16.8 cm diameter, North Carolina Museum of ArtNorth Carolina Museum of ArtThe North Carolina Museum of Art is an art museum in Raleigh, North Carolina, featuring paintings and sculpture representing 5,000 years of artistic work from antiquity to the present. The museum features more than 40 galleries as well as more than a dozen works of art in its Museum Park...
, Raleigh - Pietà (tondo, tela), 16.8 cm diameter, North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh
- St. Peter Martyr (from the pillars, canvas), 24x53 cm, Fondazione Longhi, Florence
- Dominican Saint (from the pillars, tela), 24x53 cm, Fondazione Longhi, Florence