![NdellAbateViennaportrait](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/NdellAbateViennaportrait.jpg)
Niccolò dell'Abbate, sometimes Nicolò and Abate (1509 or 15121571)
was a
Mannerist
Mannerism, which may also be known as Late Renaissance, is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, ...
Italian painter
Following is a list of Italian painters (in alphabetical order) who are notable for their art.
A
*Niccolò dell'Abbate (1509/12–1571)
*Giuseppe Abbati (1836–1868)
*Angiolo Achini (1850–1930)
*Pietro Adami (c. 1730)
*Livio Agresti (1508 ...
in
fresco
Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
and oils. He was of the
Emilia
Emilia may refer to:
People
* Emilia (given name), list of people with this name
Places
* Emilia (region), a historical region of Italy. Reggio, Emilia
* Emilia-Romagna, an administrative region in Italy, including the historical regions of Emi ...
n school, and was part of the team of artists called the
School of Fontainebleau
The School of Fontainbleau (french: École de Fontainebleau) (c. 1530 – c. 1610) refers to two periods of artistic production in France during the late Renaissance centered on the royal Palace of Fontainebleau that were crucial in forming the No ...
that introduced the
Italian Renaissance
The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...
to France. He may be found indexed under either "Niccolò" or "Abbate", though the former is more correct.
Biography
Niccolò dell'Abbate was born in
Modena
Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...
, the son of a violinist.
He trained together with
Alberto Fontana in the studio of
Antonio Begarelli
Antonio Begarelli, also known as Begarino (1499–1565) was an Italian sculptor.
He was born at Modena, and is said to have been instructed by Giovanni dell'Abbate, the father of the painter Niccolò. Begarelli worked chiefly in Modena, where m ...
,
[ a local Modenese sculptor; early influences included Ferrarese painters such as Garofalo and ]Dosso Dossi
Giovanni di Niccolò de Luteri, better known as Dosso Dossi ( 1489–1542), was an Italian Renaissance painter who belonged to the School of Ferrara, painting in a style mainly influenced by Venetian painting, in particular Giorgione and early T ...
. He specialized in long friezes with secular and mythological subjects, including for the ''Palazzo dei Beccherie'' (1537); in various rooms of the '' Rocca di Scandiano'' owned by the counts Boiardo (whom he portrayed in the late 1530s) he created 12 frescoes, one for each book of ''The Aeneid
The ''Aeneid'' ( ; la, Aenē̆is or ) is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the R ...
'', and notably a courtly ceiling ''Concert'' composed of a ring of young musicians seen in perspective, ''Sotto in Su'' (early 1540s), and the Hercules Room in the '' Rocca Meli Lupi'' at Soragna
Soragna ( Parmigiano: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Parma of northern Italy with a population of about 4,800.
The town is known from 712, when it was mentioned in a document by the Lombard king Liutprand. From 1198 it was a pos ...
(c. 1540–43), and possibly the loggia
In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior gallery or corridor, usually on an upper level, but sometimes on the ground level of a building. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns ...
frescoes removed from Palazzo Casotti at Reggio Emilia
Reggio nell'Emilia ( egl, Rèz; la, Regium Lepidi), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has abou ...
.
His style was modified by exposure to Correggio
Antonio Allegri da Correggio (August 1489 – 5 March 1534), usually known as just Correggio (, also , , ), was the foremost painter of the Parma school of the High Italian Renaissance, who was responsible for some of the most vigorous and sens ...
and Parmigianino
Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola (11 January 150324 August 1540), also known as Francesco Mazzola or, more commonly, as Parmigianino (, , ; "the little one from Parma"), was an Italian Mannerist painter and printmaker active in Florence, Rome, Bo ...
,[Whose name was formerly attached to Nicolò's ''Portrait of a Young Man''.] when he moved to Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...
in 1547. In Bologna, most of his painting depicted elaborate landscapes and aristocratic genre scenes of hunting and courtly loves, often paralleled in mythologic narratives. It was during this time that he decorated the ''Palazzo Poggi
The Palazzo Poggi is a ''palazzo'' in Via Zamboni 33, Bologna, Italy.
It is the headquarters of the University of Bologna and of the rector of the university.
History
The Palazzo Poggi was built as the home of Alessandro Poggi and his brother th ...
'', and executed a cycle of frescoes illustrating ''Orlando Furioso
''Orlando furioso'' (; ''The Frenzy of Orlando'', more loosely ''Raging Roland'') is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was no ...
'' in the ducal palace at Sassuolo
Sassuolo (; egl, label=Modenese dialect, Modenese, Sasól ) is an Italian town, ''comune'', and industrial centre of the Province of Modena in Emilia-Romagna.
Standing on the right bank of the river Secchia some southwest of Modena, the town ...
, near Modena
Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...
. Bologna is also the location of his illustrations for Ariosto
Ludovico Ariosto (; 8 September 1474 – 6 July 1533) was an Italian poet. He is best known as the author of the romance epic ''Orlando Furioso'' (1516). The poem, a continuation of Matteo Maria Boiardo's ''Orlando Innamorato'', describes the ...
's ''Orlando Furioso
''Orlando furioso'' (; ''The Frenzy of Orlando'', more loosely ''Raging Roland'') is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was no ...
'', and where he was celebrated in a sonnet which compares him to Raphael
Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of works by Raphael, His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of ...
and Titian
Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italians, Italian (Republic of Venice, Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school (art), ...
among others.[ One of his early pieces that cemented his reputation was the '' Martyrdom of St. Peter and St. Paul'', in the church of the abbey of San Pietro, Modena.
He spent 1548 through 1552 in ]Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...
, where he gained influence from Correggio
Antonio Allegri da Correggio (August 1489 – 5 March 1534), usually known as just Correggio (, also , , ), was the foremost painter of the Parma school of the High Italian Renaissance, who was responsible for some of the most vigorous and sens ...
and Parmigianino
Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola (11 January 150324 August 1540), also known as Francesco Mazzola or, more commonly, as Parmigianino (, , ; "the little one from Parma"), was an Italian Mannerist painter and printmaker active in Florence, Rome, Bo ...
. His surviving stucco-surface landscape in the Palazzo dell'Università
A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whic ...
shows his maturing style.[
In 1552, Niccolò moved to France, where he worked at the royal ]Château de Fontainebleau
Palace of Fontainebleau (; ) or Château de Fontainebleau, located southeast of the center of Paris, in the commune of Fontainebleau, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. The medieval castle and subsequent palace served as a residence ...
as a member of the decorating team under the direction of Francesco Primaticcio
Francesco Primaticcio (April 30, 1504 – 1570) was an Italian Mannerist painter, architect and sculptor who spent most of his career in France.
Biography
Born in Bologna, he trained under Giulio Romano in Mantua and became a pupil of I ...
. Within two years of his arrival he was drawing a project for a decor commemorating Anne de Montmorency (preparatory drawing at the Louvre). In Paris, he frescoed the chapel ceiling in the Hôtel de Guise (destroyed), following Primaticcio's designs. He also executed private commissions for portable canvases of mythological subjects sited in landscapes. He designed a series of tapestries titles ''Les Mois Arabesques'', some of which were used by the painted enamel industry of Limoges.[ Much of his output reflected an often overlooked function of artists of the time: the ephemeral festive decorations erected to celebrate special occasions in the court circle, for example, the decorations for the triumphal entry into Paris staged for Charles IX and his bride Elisabeth of Austria. His final pieces, in 1571, were 16 murals which were done with the assistance of his son Giulio Camillo.][ That year, Niccolò died in Fontainebleau, France.][
Niccolò's great-nephew, ]Ercole Abbate
Ercole dell'Abate or dell'Abbate (1573–1613) was an Italian mannerist painter in his native Modena. In English, his name is sometimes given as Ercole Abbate, Abate or Abati.
The eldest son of Giulio Camillo dell' Abbate, and grandson of Nicc ...
of Modena
Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...
(1573-1613), was one of his pupils.
Works
Niccolò is best known for his mythological landscape subjects, which introduced the Flemish world landscape
The world landscape, a translation of the German ''Weltlandschaft'', is a type of composition in Western painting showing an imaginary panoramic landscape seen from an elevated viewpoint that includes mountains and lowlands, water, and buildings. ...
into French art, such as the ''Orpheus
Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with Jaso ...
and Landscape with the Death of Eurydice
A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...
'' in the National Gallery, London
The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director o ...
and the '' Rape of Proserpine'' in 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 ...
, and for his profuse and elegant drawings. Not many of his frescoes have survived; however 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 ...
does have a collection of his drawings. Many of his canvasses were burnt in 1643, by the Austrian regent, Anne
Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie.
Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...
[ Some of his landscapes for Charles IX were influential for the 17th century painters ]Claude Lorrain
Claude Lorrain (; born Claude Gellée , called ''le Lorrain'' in French; traditionally just Claude in English; c. 1600 – 23 November 1682) was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher of the Baroque era. He spent most of his life in It ...
and Nicolas Poussin
Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for a ...
.
Notes
Footnotes
References
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External links
''Tribune de l'Art'':Christophe Brouard, review of the 2005 exhibition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dellabbate, Niccolo
16th-century births
1571 deaths
16th-century Italian painters
Italian male painters
Italian Mannerist painters
Italian decorators
Painters from Modena