Giovanni Bastianini (17 September 1830 – 29 June 1868) was an Italian

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

who began his career as a stonecutter in the quarries at

Fiesole Fiesole () is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, on a scenic height above Florence, 5 km (3 miles) northeast of that city. It has structures dating to Etruscan and Roman times. Sin ...

, and was sent by Francesco Inghirami to study in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

, first with

Pio Fedi Pio Fedi (1815–1892) was an Italian sculptor who worked chiefly in the Romantic style. Works Fedi is best known for his sculpture of the ''Rape of Polyxena'', or ''Pyrrhus and Polyxena'' (unveiled 1866), in the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence ...

and then with Girolamo Torrini, with whom he collaborated on a statue of

Donatello Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi ( – 13 December 1466), better known as Donatello ( ), was a Florentine sculptor of the Renaissance period. Born in Florence, he studied classical sculpture and used this to develop a complete Renaissance s ...

for the portico of the

Uffizi The Uffizi Gallery (; it, Galleria degli Uffizi, italic=no, ) is a prominent art museum located adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria in the Historic Centre of Florence in the region of Tuscany, Italy. One of the most important Italian museums ...

. Bastianini's name became famous in connection with his unmasking as the first widely publicized art forger.

Life and career

Bastianini admired

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

sculpture, which became his main inspiration. From 1848 to 1866 he was under contract to the Florentine antique dealer, Giovanni Freppa, who supplied him with casts and models as well as a

stipend A stipend is a regular fixed sum of money paid for services or to defray expenses, such as for scholarship, internship, or apprenticeship. It is often distinct from an income or a salary because it does not necessarily represent payment for work p ...

, in exchange for which Bastianini produced numerous neo-Renaissance works, especially busts and bas-reliefs in the style of

Verrocchio Andrea del Verrocchio (, , ; – 1488), born Andrea di Michele di Francesco de' Cioni, was a sculptor, Italian painter and goldsmith who was a master of an important workshop in Florence. He apparently became known as ''Verrocchio'' after the ...

Mino da Fiesole Mino da Fiesole (c. 1429 – July 11, 1484), also known as Mino di Giovanni, was an Italian Renaissance sculptor from Poppi, Tuscany. He is noted for his portrait busts. Career Mino's work was influenced by his master Desiderio da Settignano and ...

and other Italian Old Masters, most of which were sold at modest prices. In the early 1860s Freppa and Bastianini grew more ambitious. Following the success of Bastianini's bust of

Savonarola Girolamo Savonarola, OP (, , ; 21 September 1452 – 23 May 1498) or Jerome Savonarola was an Italian Dominican friar from Ferrara and preacher active in Renaissance Florence. He was known for his prophecies of civic glory, the destruction o ...

, carefully coloured and aged by the sculptor Francesco Gaiarini and placed in Inghirami's Florentine villa, where it was "discovered" by the eminent Florentine art dealer Capponi and bought for the nation, Bastianini crafted a portrait bust of the poet

Girolamo Benivieni Girolamo Benivieni (; 6 February 1453 – August 1542) was a Florentine poet and a musician. His father was a notary in Florence. He suffered poor health most of his life, which prevented him from taking a more stable job. He was a leading m ...

, which Freppa commissioned; exhibited to great acclaim in Paris as "school of

", it was purchased by comte de Nieuwerkerke for the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

at auction for fr 13,600. None of the pieces had been suspected of being inauthentic, and the deception was eventually revealed by Freppa, who resented not receiving his agreed-upon percentage of the exaggerated price paid by the

Louvre Museum The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

. The Paris press made hay. Many of the owners of Bastianini's pastiches stood by the artistic value of the works. Giovanni Costa, who had contributed to the funding of the ''Savonarola'' purchase, allowed that he was glad to hear the artist was living. Having purchased as genuine works Bastianini forgeries, in 1864 the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

in London knowingly bought a sculpture by Bastianini, as an example of modern work inspired by the best of the past; it is exhibited with other works by Bastianini formerly thought genuine. Bastianini's tin-glazed terracotta ''Portrait of a Lady'' in the

Della Robbia Della Robbia is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Luca della Robbia (1400–1481), Italian sculptor * Andrea della Robbia (1435–1525), Italian sculptor, nephew of Luca *Giovanni della Robbia (1469–1529), son of Andrea *Girola ...

technique, authenticated by

Bernard Berenson Bernard Berenson (June 26, 1865 – October 6, 1959) was an American art historian specializing in the Renaissance. His book ''The Drawings of the Florentine Painters'' was an international success. His wife Mary is thought to have had a large ...

as a "15th century Della Robbia bust of Marietta Strozzi" found its way through

Joseph Duveen Joseph Duveen, 1st Baron Duveen (14 October 1869 – 25 May 1939), known as Sir Joseph Duveen, Baronet, between 1927 and 1933, was a British art dealer who was considered one of the most influential art dealers of all time. Life and career Jos ...

to the

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts, which houses significant examples of European, Asian, and American art. Its collection includes paintings, sculpture, tapestries, and decorative arts. It was found ...

, Boston.David Sox, ''Unmasking the Forger: the Dossena deception'', 2008:130f.

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External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bastianini, Giovanni 1830 births 1868 deaths Art forgers 19th-century Italian sculptors Italian male sculptors 19th-century Italian male artists

Life and career

See also

Notes

Further reading

External links