Bearded Man
Statuette
1550-1560 (made)
1550-1560 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
An interest in antique culture and artefacts prompted the revival of the bronze statuette in 15th-century Italy. By the mid-16th century, when this bronze was made, sophisticated reproduction techniques were used. This model is known in five bronze versions and there is a wax version in the National Gallery of Art, Washington.
Design & Designing
The designer of this work is unknown, but it has been associated with Michelangelo, or one of his followers, and with Alessandro Vittoria (1525-1608) who ran an important workshop in Venice. Drawings of this figure were made by the Venetian painter, Jacopo Tintoretto (1518-1594), who possibly copied a version made of cheaper material, such as plaster, clay or wax. The use of sculptural models for pictorial design was common practice.
Ownership & Use
Bronzes statuettes of this kind were often housed alongside antique examples by wealthy collectors, and displayed on shelves in their studies, above doorways and other settings.They would also have been handled and admired by their owners. The only way to see the face of this bronze properly is to turn it in one's hands to appreciate the spiral composition of the figure more fully.
An interest in antique culture and artefacts prompted the revival of the bronze statuette in 15th-century Italy. By the mid-16th century, when this bronze was made, sophisticated reproduction techniques were used. This model is known in five bronze versions and there is a wax version in the National Gallery of Art, Washington.
Design & Designing
The designer of this work is unknown, but it has been associated with Michelangelo, or one of his followers, and with Alessandro Vittoria (1525-1608) who ran an important workshop in Venice. Drawings of this figure were made by the Venetian painter, Jacopo Tintoretto (1518-1594), who possibly copied a version made of cheaper material, such as plaster, clay or wax. The use of sculptural models for pictorial design was common practice.
Ownership & Use
Bronzes statuettes of this kind were often housed alongside antique examples by wealthy collectors, and displayed on shelves in their studies, above doorways and other settings.They would also have been handled and admired by their owners. The only way to see the face of this bronze properly is to turn it in one's hands to appreciate the spiral composition of the figure more fully.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Bearded Man (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Bronze |
| Brief description | Statuette, bronze, of a male nude, after Allessandro Vittoria, Italy, 1550-1560 |
| Physical description | Bearded naked man bending and twisting his upper body towards the left, stretching through the front his right arm and holding his left shoulder blade. His left arm touches his head and pushes it slightly to the left. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Gallery label | British Galleries:
BRONZE STATUETTES Towards the end of the 19th century many collectors and artists studied and admired Italian Renaissance bronzes of the 16th century. This figure of Perseus (?), a hero of classical mythology, was inspired by a sculpture of the same subject by Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571).(27/03/2003) |
| Object history | Cast after a model possibly by Alessandro Vittoria (born in Trent, Italy,1525, died in Venice, Italy, 1608). Made in Florence or Venice, Italy. Given by Dr. W. L. Hildburgh, F. S. A., 1956. |
| Production | Probably 1550-1560. Or Venice. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | Object Type An interest in antique culture and artefacts prompted the revival of the bronze statuette in 15th-century Italy. By the mid-16th century, when this bronze was made, sophisticated reproduction techniques were used. This model is known in five bronze versions and there is a wax version in the National Gallery of Art, Washington. Design & Designing The designer of this work is unknown, but it has been associated with Michelangelo, or one of his followers, and with Alessandro Vittoria (1525-1608) who ran an important workshop in Venice. Drawings of this figure were made by the Venetian painter, Jacopo Tintoretto (1518-1594), who possibly copied a version made of cheaper material, such as plaster, clay or wax. The use of sculptural models for pictorial design was common practice. Ownership & Use Bronzes statuettes of this kind were often housed alongside antique examples by wealthy collectors, and displayed on shelves in their studies, above doorways and other settings.They would also have been handled and admired by their owners. The only way to see the face of this bronze properly is to turn it in one's hands to appreciate the spiral composition of the figure more fully. |
| Bibliographic reference | The Genius of the Sculptor in Michelangelo's Works, exhib. cat., Motreal Museum of Fine Arts 1992, p. 197 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | A.79-1956 |
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| Record created | March 27, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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