Replication and variation: Roccatagliata and the female nude

• Autores: Shelley Sturman
• Localización: The Renaissance Workshop / David Saunders (ed. lit.), Marika Spring (ed. lit.), Andrew Meek (ed. lit.), 2013, ISBN 978-1-904982-93-7, págs. 20-28
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Nicolò Roccatagliata (c. 1560-c. 1636), active in Venice in the period from the 1580s through the early 1630s, perhaps best known for his putti sculptures, is also associated with a group of small, nude female sculptures. These figures share many distinctive characteristics in their design, manufacturing technique and material composition, determined using X-radiography and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry. It is probable that Roccatagliata was inspired by drawings of female nudes by Francesco Morandini (c. 1554-1597) in rendering his figures. In his 1674 biography, Raffaele Soprani recounts that Roccatagliata made figurines to assist Tintoretto (1518-1594) in the study of poses for his paintings. The striking comparisons between the robust bodies, long necks and small heads of Tintoretto's female nudes and Roccatagliata's statuettes, suggest that each artist influenced the other.

    Lacking period documentation and artist signatures, these bronzes were subject to technical examination and compared with analyses of securely documented works by Roccatagliata in the church of San Giorgio Maggiore, Venice. Comparisons were also made with sculptures by Roccatagliata's contemporary, Girolamo Campagna (1549-1625). Through the combination of art historical, archival and technical findings, convincing arguments are made for attributing this group of small bronze female statuettes to Nicolò Roccataglaita.