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Ermanno Stroiffi (
Stroiffi was born on 20 October 1616 in Padua as the son of the Flemish painter Giovanni (Jan or Johan, his original Flemish first and family name are not known) who was then working in Padua. His father died before 1644 as is demonstrated by Ermanno's signature on the will of Bernardo Strozzi in that year. His mother Laura died on 12 September 1652.D. Cristante, ''Novita' ed aggiornamenti per Ermanno Stroiffi'', in: Arte documento, Volume 11, Università di Udine. Cattedra di storia dell'arte moderna I., Centro per la promozione e lo sviluppo del corso di laurea in storia e tutela dei beni culturali, Electa, 1997, Page 108-117
Not much is known about the artist's training. It is known he became an assistant in the workshop of Bernardo Strozzi. Strozzi was the leading painter in Venice in the first half of the 17th century and also a Capuchin monk. Stroiffi was Strozzi's favorite assistant and worked on many of the large commissions which Strozzi received. Stroiffi was also a beneficiary of Strozzi's will.
Between 1645 and 1654 when he was still at the start of his career, Stroiffi travelled to various cities in central northern Italy. One of the cities was
Ermanno Stroiffi (Padua
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
, 20 October 1616 – Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
, 4 July 1693) was an Italian Baroque
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
painter and priest. A pupil of prominent Venetian painter Bernardo Strozzi
Bernardo Strozzi, named il Cappuccino and il Prete Genovese (c. 1581 – 2 August 1644) was an Italian Baroque painter and engraver. A canvas and fresco artist, his wide subject range included history, allegorical, genre and portrait paintin ...
, he created altarpiece
An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...
s, portraits and genre scenes
Genre art is the pictorial representation in any of various media of scenes or events from everyday life, such as markets, domestic settings, interiors, parties, inn scenes, work, and street scenes. Such representations (also called genre works, ...
. Stroiffi became a priest in 1647 and in that role he helped to introduce the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri
The Confederation of Oratories of Saint Philip Neri ( la, Confoederatio Oratorii Sancti Philippi Nerii) abbreviated CO and commonly known as the Oratorians is a Catholic society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men (priests and lay- ...
in Padua and Venice.''Venetian Seventeenth Century Painting: A Loan Exhibition from Collections in Britain and Ireland: 5 September to 30 November 1979: The National Gallery'', 1979
Life
Stroiffi was born on 20 October 1616 in Padua as the son of the Flemish painter Giovanni (Jan or Johan, his original Flemish first and family name are not known) who was then working in Padua. His father died before 1644 as is demonstrated by Ermanno's signature on the will of Bernardo Strozzi in that year. His mother Laura died on 12 September 1652.D. Cristante, ''Novita' ed aggiornamenti per Ermanno Stroiffi'', in: Arte documento, Volume 11, Università di Udine. Cattedra di storia dell'arte moderna I., Centro per la promozione e lo sviluppo del corso di laurea in storia e tutela dei beni culturali, Electa, 1997, Page 108-117
Not much is known about the artist's training. It is known he became an assistant in the workshop of Bernardo Strozzi. Strozzi was the leading painter in Venice in the first half of the 17th century and also a Capuchin monk. Stroiffi was Strozzi's favorite assistant and worked on many of the large commissions which Strozzi received. Stroiffi was also a beneficiary of Strozzi's will.
Between 1645 and 1654 when he was still at the start of his career, Stroiffi travelled to various cities in central northern Italy. One of the cities was Mantua
Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name.
In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...
, the historic power base of the Gonzaga family, which was an important patron of the arts. He received commissions from the Ducal court. Other painters active at the court in Mantua at that time included Daniel van den Dyck
Daniel van den Dyck, known in Italy as Daniel VandichDaniël van Dyck
at the , a Flemish artist who had moved to Mantua around 1657 and had become the court painter. In the 1650s Stroiffi participated in the cycle of the oratory of San Filippo Neri at the hospital of
in: Giancarlo Malacarne, Renato Berzaghi, Stefano l'Occaso, Paolo Bertell, ‘Dai Gonzaga agli Asburgo: l'inventario del 1714 di Palazzo Ducale’, Edizioni Speroniane, pp. 159
Stroiffi became a priest in 1647. He played an important role in the establishment of the Congregation of the Oratory in Padua and Venice.Cecilia Ferrazzi, ''Autobiography of an Aspiring Saint Autobiography of an Aspiring Saint'', The University of Chicago Press. 1996
at Wannenes
His style was close to that of his master Strozzi. He gradually developed away from Strozzi's example and created powerful compositions through the use of shade.
The relationship between the works of Stroiffi and Strozzi can be illustrated through the early work ''Fruit vendor'' (
at the , a Flemish artist who had moved to Mantua around 1657 and had become the court painter. In the 1650s Stroiffi participated in the cycle of the oratory of San Filippo Neri at the hospital of
San Lazzaro dei Mendicanti
San Lazzaro dei Mendicanti is an ancient church in the sestiere of Castello, Venice, northern Italy, with a facade facing a Rio of the same name. It now serves as the chapel of the Civic Hospital of Venice.
History
By 1224, a hospital for lep ...
in Venice.Paolo Bertelli, ''Disiecta Membra''in: Giancarlo Malacarne, Renato Berzaghi, Stefano l'Occaso, Paolo Bertell, ‘Dai Gonzaga agli Asburgo: l'inventario del 1714 di Palazzo Ducale’, Edizioni Speroniane, pp. 159
Stroiffi became a priest in 1647. He played an important role in the establishment of the Congregation of the Oratory in Padua and Venice.Cecilia Ferrazzi, ''Autobiography of an Aspiring Saint Autobiography of an Aspiring Saint'', The University of Chicago Press. 1996
Work
Ermanno Stroiffi was a versatile and prolific artist who worked on canvas and as a fresco artist. He treated a wide range of subject matter including religious, mythological and allegorical themes as well asgenre scenes
Genre art is the pictorial representation in any of various media of scenes or events from everyday life, such as markets, domestic settings, interiors, parties, inn scenes, work, and street scenes. Such representations (also called genre works, ...
and portraits. Some of his compositions include still life elements. Religious compositions make up the majority of his works. The number of works attributed to the artist is limited as a good part of his production is still submerged in the countless paintings attributed to Strozzi and his workshop.Ermanno Stroiffi (Padova, 1616 - Venezia, 1693), ''Madonna col Bambino e Sant'Antonio''at Wannenes
His style was close to that of his master Strozzi. He gradually developed away from Strozzi's example and created powerful compositions through the use of shade.
The relationship between the works of Stroiffi and Strozzi can be illustrated through the early work ''Fruit vendor'' (
Ducal palace, Mantua
The Palazzo Ducale di Mantova ("Ducal Palace") is a group of buildings in Mantua, Lombardy, northern Italy, built between the 14th and the 17th century mainly by the noble family of Gonzaga as their royal residence in the capital of their Duch ...
). The work was only recently attributed to Stroiffi after having been attributed to a painter in the circle of Strozzi. The work was created in Mantua during the years of Stroiffi's apprenticeship. The painting is derived from Strozzi's original (Stanley Moss collection, Riverdale on Hudson, N.Y.). Stroiffi has reworked his master's model in line with his personal artistic preferences. The veil of the fruit vendor appears softened and the male profile reflects a model by Stroiffi, which reappears in a series of works recently attributed to the artist. Another difference between Stroiffi's and Strozzi's versions is that the fabrics in Strozzi's original are swollen and crispy while they are drooping and flat in Stroiffi's work. Stroiffi has also added more fruit and vegetables, showing his interest in the still life genre.
References
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stroiffi, Ermanno 1616 births 1693 deaths Clergy from Padua Italian male painters 17th-century Italian painters Italian Baroque painters 17th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests Italian people of Flemish descent Painters from Padua