Drawing, Francesco Primaticcio, Ulysses taking leave of Alcinous, School of Fountainebleau, c.1555

Two men standing and embracing; they wear Roman costume, and recline their heads on each other's shoulders

Bequeathed by Rev. Alexander Dyce

Collections - Jonathan Richardson, senior, and Benjamin West.

Acquired as by Primaticcio, the drawing was then catalogued as Emilian mid 16th century by Peter Ward-Jackson (1979). S. Béguin in 1982 reattributed the sheet to Primaticcio and connected it with the Gallery of Ulysses depicted by the Italian artist in the Chateau de Fontainebleau, France. The present drawing shows the left hand-side of a composition attributed to Primaticcio in the National Museum, Stockholm (NMH 828/1863). These two sheets are considered to constitute the first idea for a composition recorded in a 16th-century copy (Louvre, INV.8703) and subsequently engraved by Théodore van Thulden (plate 29), c. 1633. It shows the 29th compartment of the Gallery of Ulysses, which was about 150 m long, and was destroyed in 1738 by Louis XV. The decoration of the gallery is recorded in descriptions, drawings and prints.

The present scene shows Ulysses taking leave of the King Alcinous who provides him a ship to return to Ithaca (Homer, Odyssey, 13: 53-95). In the background of the final composition, one can see the ship being prepared by Alcinous’ attendants for Ulysses to depart.

It is likely that the decoration of the walls began only towards the end of the 1540s (Béguin, Guillaume and Roy, 1985) after the death of Rosso Fiorentino who had been entrusted by Francis I of the decoration of the castle. Primaticcio’s leadership at Rosso’s death caused a dramatic change in the decorative scheme. He opted for a very complex structure articulated around the story of Ulysses returning from Troy to his native island Ithaca. The scheme incorporated a variety of media to produce a rich effect.

The technique employed in Dyce.357, a black lead pencil called pierre noire, is not common in Primaticcio’s output. However it has allowed Sylvie Béguin to date the sheet c. 1555. She believes it is a remarkable example of the use of this technique in Primaticcio’s late period. The same technique can be found in a few other drawings such as the Victoria Gallica (Uffizi, Dimier 139, for the 4th compartment), a study for a Muse (Louvre, INV.8608, Dimier 95), and a study for a young warrior formerly in the collection of T.P. Clifford (compartement 10).

The Galerie d’Ulysse was undoubtedly Primaticcio’s masterpiece at Fontainebleau. Together with the other artists summoned from Italy by Francis I (Rosso Fiorentino, Perino del Vaga and Nicolo dell’Abate), Primaticcio created rich and elegant style incorporating combinations of stuccowork, grotesques and illusionistic paintings. This style was later called ‘school of Fontainebleau’ and had a durable impact on French art.

Primaticcio had a great impact of French art during the 16th century. His designs inspired many contemporary artists, most of them having collaborated with him at Fontainebleau. His art, combined with the work of at Fontainebleau generated a stylistic school called school of Fontainebleau, whose designs were subsequently engraved and disseminated all over Europe.

DYCE.357