I'm Kenney Mencher. I'm an artist who left a tenured professorship in 2016 to pursue making art full time. This blog is about art, art history, with a emphasis on human rights. I make homoerotic art featuring bears, otters & other gay wildlife.
Friday
Art History Everyone Should Know: Renaissance Painting and the Substyle of Mannerism
Renaissance Mannerism
Mannerism in Painting
Italian MANIERISMO (from maniera, "manner," or "style").
Mannerism is a weird overly "stylized" style that is a subset of the Italian Renaissance style and period. Its main qualities are that it is a bit shocking in terms of the subject matter. Often, although the themes are classical they are "sexy." However, although they are a bit shocking and risqué, Mannerist artists still seem to know the basic rules and get away with staying inside the boundaries of good taste. So another quality of Mannerism is that Mannerist artists seems to know the etiquette or "manner" of good taste but they also bend the rules a bit.
They tend to bend the rules also in terms of the formal qualities. Mannerist art takes many of its schemas from Michelangelo but they tend to exaggerate the qualities found in his art. The figures always seem to be perched on the edge of action. Often they are portrayed in the moment just before they rise up from a chair. They are nether seated nor are they actually moving. Often the figures' anatomies are weird, twisting and distorted. Heads are too small, figures seem to float in ambiguous space and the color and value structure are often over emphasized or exaggerated unnaturally.
Correggio (Antonio Allegri) Jupiter and Io 1532-33 oil on canvas 64x28 in Kuntshistorisches Museum, Vienna Italian Renaissance, Mannerism |
Form: Correggio's style of painting is almost a shopping
list of what a Mannerist painting should look like. Correggio paints
the fantastic in an illusionistic and believable manner. The cloud,
which is Zeus in disguise, is rendered in a believable manner. The
figure of Io's anatomy is distorted. The head is a bit too small
and the torso is elongated but on first glance it seems believable.
The pose is somewhat improbable but again it looks real.
The space he creates is also a twist on earlier depictions
of space. Here Correggio foregoes the illusion of deep space and
pushes the whole scene up against the picture plane and the space around
it is strange. The viewer after a closer look at the painting is
forced to ask themselves, "where is this taking place?"
Iconography: Correggio even takes the idea of classicism and the depiction of classical mythology and puts a spin on it. Io was a priestess of the Roman goddess Juno. Juno was the jealous wife of Jupiter, the king of the gods. Jupiter was indeed very unfaithful. When Jupiter fell in love with Io, he transformed himself into the shape of a dark cloud to hide himself from his jealous wife. However, noticed the small cloud and suspected that the cloud was one of Jupiter's tricks. Thus, she approached to check the true nature of the cloud. As soon as Juno arrived, Jupiter immediately transformed Io into a white cow to avoid his wife's wrath. But Juno guessed the intrigue and asked if Jupiter wanted the cow as a gift. Jupiter could not refuse such a little gift without giving himself away.This tale is not a moralizing one but rather an excuse to show a semi erotic scene under the disguise, much like Titian's Venus of Urbino, of a classical or humanistic theme. Context: Correggio and other Mannerist artists of his day were catering to the new, somewhat controversial tastes of his clients. "At the height of his career while working for the Duke of Mantua, Frederigo Gonzaga (1530-33), Correggio painted a group of works for presentation to Emperor Charles V representing the loves of Jupiter ("Leda", "Antiope", "Ganymede", and "Io")." |
Agnolo Bronzino, Venus, Cupid and the Time (Allegory of Lust) 1540-45 Oil on panel, 57"x45" 147 x 117 cm National Gallery, London Italian Renaissance, Mannerism |
Form: Bronzino's painting exhibits the Mannerist
flair for an intense distortion of anatomy, space, and color. The
figures, particularly that of the cupid on the left, exhibits an
almost grotesque distortion. Cupid is simultaneously showing us his
rump and his head. The fingers of Cupid's hand, which grasp Venus's
breast (his mother!) is posed in a very unnatural manner. (Try holding
your hand in such a manner.) The pose of the hand and his incredible
twist are almost impossible. Likewise, the two hands of the figure
behind the small child at right, are reversed.
The space all of these jumbled figures exist in is almost
incomprehensible. Where are they are? What are they standing
on and why does it appear as if the picture plane is tilted forward and
that they will all tumble out of the picture towards us.
The color is also very high key. The blues and purple tones are almost garish and the flesh tones of the figures range from an almost greenish hue (the figure grasping his head in the background) to a naturalistic copper (Father Time pulling back the curtain) to a pale unnatural vampirish glow of the figures in the foreground. Context and Iconography: Even Bronzino's name is a kind of mannered twist. His original name was Agnolo, or Agniolo, Di Cosimo but because his skin was a dark olive, his contemporaries nicknamed him "Bronzino" which is the Italian word for bronze. |
The picture is almost certainly that mentioned by Vasari in his 'Life of Bronzino' of 1568: "He made a picture of singular beauty, which was sent to King Francis in France; in which was a nude Venus with Cupid kissing her, and Pleasure on one side and Play with other Loves; and and on the other, Fraud, Jealousy, and other passions of love." The figures of Venus, and Cupid, together with the old man with wings and an hourglass on his shoulder who must be Time (not mentioned by Vasari), are all clearly identifiable by their attributes. Agreement on the identity of the other figures, and on the meaning of the picture has not been reached.According to the Brittanica:
The howling figure on the left has variously been interpreted as Jealousy, Despair and the effects of syphilis; the boy scattering roses and stepping on a thorn as Jest, Folly and Pleasure; the hybrid creature with the face of a girl, the back and tail of a reptile and the haunches of a lion as Pleasure and Deceit; and the figure missing the back of its head in the top left corner as Fraud and Oblivion.
The composition was influenced by the work of Michelangelo, especially his famous cartoon showing Venus and Cupid kissing, from which a painting was made by Pontormo, Bronzino's master. Bronzino was an accomplished poet as well as a painter. The picture seems to reflect his interest both in the conventional oppositions of Petrarchan love lyrics as well as more bawdy poetic genres.London National Gallery
Bronzino was greatly influenced by the work of his teacher, the Florentine painter Jacopo da Pontormo. Bronzino adapted his master's eccentric, expressive style (early Mannerism) to create a brilliant, precisely linear style of his own that was also partly influenced by Michelangelo and the late works of Raphael. Bronzino served as the court painter to Cosimo I, duke of Florence, from 1539 until his death. His portraits, such as "Portrait of Eleanor of Toledo with Her Son Giovanni" (Uffizi, Florence), are preeminent examples of Mannerist portraiture: emotionally inexpressive, reserved, and noncommittal, yet arrestingly elegant and decorative. Bronzino's great technical proficiency and his stylized rounding of sinuous anatomical forms are also notable. He also painted sacred and allegorical works of distinction, such as "The Allegory of Luxury," or "Venus, Cupid, Folly, and Time" (c. 1546; National Gallery, London), which reveals his love of complex symbolism, contrived poses, and clear, brilliant colours. "Bronzino, Il." Britannica 2001 Standard Edition CD-ROM. Copyright © 1994-2001 Britannica.com Inc. November 9, 2002.
School of Fontainebleau, Venus and Cupid, c1559 oil on panel, transferred to composition board 37 3/4 x 27 3/4 (95.9 x 70.5 cm) inches French Renaissance, Mannerism |
A Contextual Comparison:
Although Mannerism is an essentially Italian style of painting it did have its followers in other countries. This is an example of a less accomplished French style of Mannerism. Notice that it uses Bronzino's painting as its schema yet it lacks some of the formal qualities that its Italian schema has. It also lacks some of the "edge" or aggressive risqué qualities of Bronzino's work in terms of how the iconography is used. This painting is more or less a watered down imitation of its Italian counterpart. There is no known artist for this work. Rather than that, this painting is ascribed to a school or style of a group of painters called the "School of Fountainebleau." According to the San Francisco Museum Legion of Honor's website, "Fontainebleau is a royal palace of Francis I. It was begun in 1528 and added to for the next 200 years. The Galerie François I (1533-40) introduces the so-called "Fontainebleau style" of interior decoration, a combination of sculpture, metalwork, painting, stucco and woodwork. It was evolved by Italian artists Niccolo dell'Abbate, Primaticcio and Rosso, who worked for Francis I from 1530 to 1560. The first School of Fontainebleau introduced Mannerism to France. A decorative revival under Henry IV, known as the second School of Fontainebleau, was less important." |
Correggio, Dome of Parma Cathedral The Assumption of the Virgin, 1520 Parma Cathedral Italian Renaissance, Mannerism |
Nichole Young-Lin
Art History 103B July 18, 2001 Professor Mencher A formal analysis of Correggio's The Assumption of the Virgin reveals many important details about this fantastic artwork. The fresco is a spiraling tunnel with a bright light at the end of the tunnel. Correggio draws everything in one-point perspective with the vanishing point at the central bright light and uses chiaroscuro to give the dome depth. To create space, Correggio also used foreshortening when drawing the figures, making the limbs look long despite the small drawing space. The combination of perspective, chiaroscuro, and foreshortening gives the dome its trompe l’oeil characteristic and allows Correggio to fool the viewer into thinking that there isn't a dome at all, but a tunnel upwards toward a bright light. All the colors of the work are very bright, full of yellow hues. This makes the viewer think that the light at the end of the spiraling tunnel is a real light. The figures are what make The Assumption of the Virgin the epitome of Mannerist art. The arms and legs of many of the angels are elongated and their bodies are twisted in physically impossible ways (serpenata). There is also much confusion over where the body of an angel begins or ends. Correggio also includes a plethora of nude figures. The figures and the entire fresco also have a sense of movement. The angels and Apostles in the painting seem to move and spiral upward. |
In addition to the forms and icons of The Assumption of the Virgin, the history and background of the fresco help prove that Correggio is a master of Mannerism and the forefather of the Baroque period. Historically, it is reasonable that Correggio would choose to portray the religious Assumption scene in his art. The Assumption of Mary in art stems from the late Middle Ages of western Europe. During this time, the Church was a powerful force in people's lives and Mary was often worshipped (Encyclopedia Britannica). In response to the Reformation, the break from the Catholic Church in 1517 when Martin Luther posted his "Ninety-Five Theses," Mannerist painters strove to return glory to the Catholic Church. Thus, the beauty of this dome, in the true spirit of Mannerism, is an attempt to impress people with the power of the Catholic Church and remind them that the absolution they all seek can only be obtained through the Catholic Church. Correggio also painted the Dome of the Parma Cathedral in 1520, during the beginning of Mannerism. Even though The Assumption of the Virgin is the epitome of Mannerist works since it embodies all the aspects of Mannerism, this work also foreshadowed the ensuing Baroque period (Gardner 510). Baroque works are typically very dramatic and lavish, just like Correggio's The Assumption of the Virgin. The figures are all in dramatic poses (some are dancing, some are dangling, etc.) and they all show a lot of expression in their faces. The voluminous clouds and light on the top of the dome also give the fresco a dramatic setting. And, like Baroque art, the fresco is very extravagant because every space is filled with an object, forming an intricate work of art.
It is obvious that Correggio is a mast of Mannerism and foretells many of Baroque art characteristics. The Assumption of the Virgin has the Mannerist serpenata figures, distortion of the body, and the sense of movement that is found in all Mannerist painting. Besides having Mannerist qualities, Correggio's time period made him the founder of future Baroque art. The drama and extravagance of the Parma Cathedral dome is an indicator of Baroque art. However, even without the knowing anything about Mannerism and Baroque art, the viewer is still overwhelmed with the awe-inspiring fresco that fools you into thinking that there is a tunnel up above and real light is coming from the end of that tunnel. The scene and effects of this fresco is a memorable one and will stay with the viewer forever. Keats’s words in Endymion, "A thing of beauty is a joy forever," describes the effect of this dome on the viewer to perfection.
http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?eu=10083&tocid=0
Correggio. (2001). Britannica article [WWW document] URL:
http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?eu=26831
Detail of the Assumption; Apostles at the base of the dome. (date unknown). Later Italian
Renaissance Art: Jack Frieberg [WWW document] URL:
http://www.fsu.edu./~arh/LR/9/Main.html
Gardner, Helen. Art Through the Ages. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, INC., 1975.
Henry, Lewis C. Best Quotations for All Occaisons. New York: Fawcett Premier, 1986.
Giovanni da Bologna, Rape of the Sabines 1581-83 Marble, height: 410 cm Loggia dei Lanzi, Florence |
Italian Renaissance, Mannerism |
 |
Form: This is sculpture with a mannered "twist."
Form is the most important element in this work. As a work of sculpture,
this work is really meant as a work of art "in the round." This means
that, unlike the works of sculpture that came before it that were frontally
oriented, this work was meant to be seen from all angles.
The viewer is able to move completely around the sculpture
and maintain visual interest because the figures are designed to interrelate
and show an interesting view of the bodies in action from any angle.
Iconography and Context: According to the Brittanica, "First trained under Jacques Dubroeucq, a Flemish sculptor who worked in an Italianate style, Giambologna went to Rome around 1555, where his style was influenced by Hellenistic sculpture and the works of Michelangelo." Like Michelangelo, the Laocoon groups influence was initially interesting to Michelangelo and Giovanni because of its formal qualities rather than its symbolic ones and this is born out in how often each artist uses the basic poses of each figure as schemas for later works. We can see that he probably was influenced by looking at sculptures like the Laocoon because of its drama and the portrayal of anatomy and expression. Initially, the story of the "Rape of the Sabines" is unimportant in terms of what the story itself signifies. One account of the naming of this sculpture is that Giovanni did not name the work but some patrons who were visiting his studio upon viewing the sculpture did and he accepted the name. Therefore, the classical theme was really an excuse for him to explore and play with anatomy and drama. This anecdote in itself is almost more iconic in a way because it symbolizes what the Mannerist artists' intentions were all about. |
Jacopo Pontormo, Deposition, c. 1528 Oil on wood, 313 x 192 cm Cappella Capponi, Sta Felicita, Florence Italian Renaissance, Mannerism |
These figures seem to be perched on the edge of action
but from there poses and attitudes, we are not really sure what they are
doing or just about to do. The figures' anatomies are weird, twisting
and distorted. The figure of Christ is literally twisted in two directions.
His head and torso or facing the viewer while the legs are quite the opposite
and project back into space. The figure below Jesus, who holds his
legs, seems to have an extra vertebrae or joint in his spine. Try
to bend from the middle of your back! All the heads are a bit too
small and the bodies are a bit too elongated.
Compositionally, the image is both a stable triangle but
also a whirling vortex. The image hinges on and swirls around a central
area in which three hands exist within a pocket of dark drapery.
The confusion of the composition and the space they exist in: where are
they and on what are they standing? These riddles are further
complicated by trying to figure whose hands go with whose bodies.
The colors used are intense and saturated. They are almost pastel in nature and are overly dramatic. The value structure and chiaroscuro is exaggerated unnaturally and the viewer is left wondering where the light is coming from. Iconographically this image is a cross between Giotto's Lamentation a Deposition scene and Leonardo's Pietà. "The painting appears to represent the moment in which the body of Christ, having been taken down from the cross, has just been removed from the mother's lap. The Virgin, visibly distraught, and perhaps on the point of fainting, still gazes longingly towards her Son, and gestures with her right arm in that direction. In the center of the painting, the moment of the separation is underlined by the subtle contact of Mary's legs with those of Christ, now freed from his Mother's last pathetic embrace. The twisted body of Christ is reminiscent of Michelangelo's Vatican Pietà (1498)."Context: "The cloaked man wearing a strange hat, almost imperceptible against the background of the painting behind the arm of the Virgin, may possibly be the artist himself. " The rest of this quote and a site with more details of the image http://rolfgross.topcities.com/Tuscany/Potormo/Jacopo%20Pontormo.htm Pontormo was Bronzino's teacher and if you look closely at this image at the anatomy and the composition you can see a lot of similarities between the two. A site that puts this together for you is: A site which compares Bronzino's Deposition to Pontormo's (his teacher) http://www.bergerfoundation.ch/Jardin/pontormo-bronzino-dep_english.html |
Parmigiano, Madonna dal Collo Lungo (Madonna with Long Neck) 1534-40 Oil on panel, 216 x 132 cm, Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence Italian Renaissance, Mannerism |
Form: The central figure of the Madonna seem to
be perched on the edge of her chair but there is no chair visible in the
image! Her feet rest on a cushion but the cushions are not compressed
and there is no sense of gravity to her figure. The figures' anatomies
are weird, twisting and distorted. Her fingers and neck is elongated
and taffy like and so is the "alien" looking child who looks as if he about
to spill from her lap. In particular, her anatomy is somewhat
accentuated by the wet drapery which stretches across her abdomen. All
the heads of each figure are a bit too small and the bodies are a bit too
elongated.
Compositionally, the image is a stable triangle in the
mode of Leonardo, however, the confusion of the composition becomes
more evident when trying to figure out where they are and from what the
drapery is hung. The figures to the Madonna's right are bunched together
and there is not realistically enough space for them all to be standing.
The figure who irrationally holds a scroll out and looks away from it is
framed by a column or a set of columns that do not hold up
an entablature.
The colors used are intense and saturated. They are almost pastel in nature and are overly dramatic. The value structure and chiaroscuro is exaggerated unnaturally and the viewer is left wondering where the light is coming from. Iconography: Iconographically this image shares much with earlier scenes which depict the Virgin but somehow this one is a little "dirty." The breasts and abdomen of the figure are accentuated by the wet drapery style and we can see this even in the Late Gothic/Early Renaissance painting of the Madonna Enthroned by Giotto but somehow, the tilt of her head adds what my Professor Herbert Broderick of Lehman College referred to as a "coy sensuality." See the "Venus of Urbino" for a good comparison. Some of the iconography is almost straightforward in this image. The vessel that the "angels" carry refers to standard iconographic symbology such as in Martini's Annunciation, but notice that the shape and the base are a bit wacky. The column in the background is a reference to classicism but what is it holding up and is it really a single column or many columns. The figure reading the scroll looks away from the scroll he is reading. Is he a philosopher or an angel like Gabriel in Martini's work? If he Gabriel and this is part of the standard iconography of a "Annunciation" scene but it would then be after the fact of Jesus' birth and therefore an anachronism (out of a logical sequence of time). Context: Again with the twist on his name his nickname was Parmigiano (he was from Parma). His original name was GIROLAMO FRANCESCO MARIA MAZZOLA, OR MAZZUOLI, or Francesco Mazzola. Another twist! It took him six years to paint the picture, he never finished it and he was thrown in jail for breach of contract because he procrastinated working on some frescos in the church of Sta. Maria della Steccata in Parma. |
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos) The Burial of Count Orgaz 1586 Oil on canvas, 16'x12' 480 x 360 cm Santo Tomé, Toledo Spanish Renaissance, Mannerism |
Form: This is a massive painting done in oil rather
than fresco. This is significant because monumental paintings in
the past was usually executed in fresco.
Aside from the more obvious Mannerist distortions of the
figures' anatomies, this painting demonstrates a slight break with other
Mannerist's use of color in El Greco's use of a low key or earthtoned palette
for some of the regions of the painting. This use of color is almost
iconic.
Iconography: Count de Orgaz was a significant and important patron to the Church. In order to glorify his contributions and patronage a monumental image was called for. The grandiosity of the Count is further complimented by the supernatural vision of the Heavens above which open to greet him. He is further complimented by the company he keeps and by those important individuals who are attending his funeral. The funeral is well attended by the Spanish nobility of Orgaz's time but their faces are updated and replaced by members of contemporary Toledo society. This is done much in the same way that Raphael gives cameo appearances to his contemporaries in his School of Athens. El Greco even includes his own son in the lower left hand corner and provides him with a handkerchief monogrammed by the artist himself. But the really honored guests are Saints Augustine and Stephen who appear to be helping to entomb the Count. Heaven and earth are distinguished symbolically through the use of color. Saints Augustine and Stephen and even the Counts armor are depicted in colors that echo the ones in the heavenly scene above. The earthbound participants are literally wearing earthtoned colors. Context: El Greco is a nickname which chronicles or traces all the places where El Greco lived and where he was born. He was born in Crete (then a Venetian possession but still considered a Greek island by the Italians) Doménikos Theotokópoulos moved to Venice since he was officially considered a citizen. There he acquired the nickname of il Greco (the Greek.) After studying Venetian painting and possibly realizing that the competition may have been a bit too steep, Theotokópoulos moved to Spain in search of more commissions. In Spain, it is possible that the "il" article in front of his name was exchanged for the Spanish one of "El." |
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos) St. Francis Venerating the Crucifix c. 1595 Oil on canvas, 147,3 x 105,4 cm Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco Spanish Renaissance, Mannerism, |
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos) St. John the Baptist c. 1600 Oil on canvas, 111 x 66 cm Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, |
These two paintings by El Greco are in the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco. Using all the things that you have learned about Renaissance iconography and Mannerism's formal qualities be ready to write an essay on how one of these works exemplifies these qualities. |
UC DAVIS ART DEPARTMENT NEWS LETTER
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WELCOME TO
THIS MONTH IN THE ARTS
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· Ann
Agee, Visiting Artist’s Lecture Series
· AHI
401, Curatorial Methods to Present Two Exhibitions
· The
Art of Appropriation
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HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS ISSUE
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Thursday
Wednesday
Opening Reception: "Taking Flight: The Paintings of Karen Mason" March 7, 6-8pm
Opening Reception: "Taking Flight: The Paintings of Karen Mason" March 7, 6-8pm
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