putti

A putto (; plural putti ) is a figure in a work of art depicted as a chubby male child, usually naked and sometimes winged. Originally limited to profane passions in symbolism,Dempsey, Charles. ''Inventing the Renaissance Putto''. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill and London, 2001. the putto came to represent the sacred cherub (plural cherubim), and in Baroque art the putto came to represent the omnipresence of God. A putto representing a cupid is also called an amorino (plural amorini) or amoretto (plural amoretti).

Etymology

The more commonly found form ''putti'' is the plural of the Italian word ''putto''. The Italian word comes from the Latin word ''putus'', meaning "boy" or "child". Today, in Italian, ''putto'' means either toddler winged angel or, rarely, toddler boy. It may have been derived from the same Indo-European root as the Sanskrit word "putra" (meaning "boy child", as opposed to "son"), Avestan ''puθra''-, Old Persian ''puça''-, Pahlavi (Middle Persian) ''pus'' and ''pusar'', all meaning "son", and the New Persian ''pesar'' "boy, son".

History

Putti, in the ancient classical world of art, were winged infants that were believed to influence human lives. In Renaissance art, the form of the putto was derived in various ways including the Greek Eros or Roman Amor/ Cupid, the god of love and companion of Aphrodite or Venus; the Roman, genius, a type of guardian spirit; or sometimes the Greek, daemon, a type of messenger spirit, being halfway between the realms of the human and the divine.Struthers, Sally A.
Donatello's 'Putti': Their Genesis, Importance, and Influence on Quattrocento Sculpture and Painting. (Volumes I and II).
(PhD Dissertation)" The Ohio State University, 1992. United States – OhioLINK ETD.

Revival of the putto in the Renaissance

Putti are a classical motif found primarily on child sarcophagi of the 2nd century, where they are depicted fighting, dancing, participating in bacchic rites, playing sports, etc.

The putto disappeared during the Middle Ages and was revived during the Quattrocento. The revival of the figure of the putto is generally attributed to Donatello, in Florence in the 1420s, although there are some earlier manifestations (for example the tomb of Ilaria del Carretto, sculpted by Jacopo della Quercia in Lucca). Since then, Donatello has been called the originator of the putto because of the contribution to art he made in restoring the classical form of putto. He gave putto a distinct character by infusing the form with Christian meanings and using it in new contexts such as musician angels. Putti also began to feature in works showing figures from classical mythology, which became popular in the same period.

Most Renaissance putti are essentially decorative and they ornament both religious and secular works, without usually taking any actual part in the events depicted in narrative paintings. There are two popular forms of the putto as the main subject of a work of art in 16th-century Italian Renaissance art: the sleeping putto and the standing putto with an animal or other object.Korey, ALexandra M.
Putti, Pleasure, and Pedagogy in Sixteenth-Century Italian Prints and Decorative Arts
" The University of Chicago, 2007. United States – Illinois: ''ProQuest Dissertations and Theses (PQDT)''. Web. 23 Oct. 2011.

Where putti are found

Putti, cupids, and angels (see below) can be found in both religious and secular art from the 1420s in Italy, the turn of the 16th century in the Netherlands and Germany, the Mannerist period and late Renaissance in France, and throughout Baroque ceiling frescoes. So many artists have depicted them, but among the best-known are the sculptor Donatello and the painter Raphael. The two relaxed and curious putti who appear at the foot of Raphael's Sistine Madonna are often reproduced.

They also experienced a major revival in the 19th century, where they gamboled through paintings by French academic painters, from Gustave Doré’s illustrations for '' Orlando Furioso'' to advertisements.

Iconography of the putto

The iconography of putti is deliberately unfixed, so that it is difficult to tell the difference between putti, cupids, and various forms of angels. They have no unique, immediately identifiable attributes, so that putti may have many meanings and roles in the context of art.

Some of the more common associations are:
*Associations with Aphrodite, and so with romantic—or erotic—love
*Associations with Heaven
*Associations with peace, prosperity, mirth, and leisure

Historiography

The historiography of this subject matter is very short. Many art historians have commented on the importance of the putto in art, but few have undertaken a major study. One useful scholarly examination is Charles Dempsey's ''Inventing the Renaissance Putto''.

Gallery

Stirling Heads - Putto.JPG, Renaissance putto on the ceiling of Stirling Castle ( Stirling, Scotland)

Design for a Frieze with Putto and Acanthus Scroll MET DP838032.jpg, Design for a frieze with a putto and an acanthus scroll; probably from the 17th century; pen and brown ink with gray and light brown wash; the sheet: 21 × 32.5 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)

Cabinet de la Pendule. Versailles. 05.JPG, Rococo ornaments with putti, in the Cabinet de la Pendule, part of the Palace of Versailles (France)

File:Relief of Diana, at the Amalienburg.jpg, The rococo relief of Diana with two putti at the Amalienburg, in Munich (Germany)

File:Pair of vases MET DP170824.jpg, Pair of Chinese vases with French Rococo mounts; the vases: early 18th century, the mounts: 1760–70; hard-paste porcelain with ormolu mounts; 32.4 x 16.5 x 12.4 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Francois Boucher The Rape of Europa.jpg, ''The Rape of Europa''; by François Boucher; circa 1732-1734; oil on canvas; 273.5 x 230.8 cm; Wallace Collection (London, the UK)

Putti met twee wapenschilden.jpeg, Rococo putti with two coats of arms; 1746; etching on paper; 7 x 11.3 cm; Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam, the Netherlands)

File:Marmeren Putti, BK-1976-46-B.jpg, Putto statue; 1746-1748; marble; height: 74 cm, weight: 56 kg; Rijksmuseum

Candelabrum (one of a pair) MET DP-12374-040.jpg, Pair of rococo candelabrums; 18th century; soft-paste porcelain; heights (the left one): 26.8 cm, (the right one): 26.4 cm; by the Chelsea porcelain factory; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Vuurbok van verguld brons met putti die zich aan een vlam warmen, BK-16904-A.jpg, Parisian firedog with putti that warm themselves at a flame; 1780-1790; ormolu; height: 34.5 cm; Rijksmuseum

File:Château de Voltaire à Ferney 29.JPG, Putto statue in the Parc du Château de Ferney-Voltaire ( Ferney-Voltaire, France)

Paris - Les Invalides - Avant-corps de la façade nord - 004.jpg, Relief on a lunette of the north portal of the Hôtel des Invalides (Paris)

François duquesnoy, tomba di ferdinando van der eyden, m. 1630, 01.jpg, ''Putti'' of the '' Tomb of Ferdinand van den Eynde''. The ''putti'' of Van den Eynde's tomb are considered the peak of the evolution of the ''putto''.

0 Sarcophage aux Putti - Museo Pio-Clementino (Vatican).JPG, Sarcophagus of the Museo Pio-Clementino ( Vatican Museums).

See also

* Puer Mingens – Artistic depictions of boys urinating
* Four Kumāras – A group of semi-divine sage boys in Hinduism
* Gohō dōji – Buddhist guardian deities in the form of young boys

References

External links

Warburg Institute Iconographic Database: ca. 1,400 images of Amorini (Amoretti) in secular contexts

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Angels in art
Italian words and phrases
Renaissance art
Visual motifs
Eros
Cupid