Massimiliano Soldani Benzi - Adonis Mourned by Venus and Cupids - Walters 54677 - Profile

Andromeda and the Sea Monster, and Leda and the Swan, 11364501

Massimiliano Soldani or Massimiliano Soldani Benzi (15 July 1656 – 23 February 1740) 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 ...

sculptor and medallist, mainly active in

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

. Born at Montevarchi, the son of a Tuscan

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry in ...

captain, Soldani was employed by the

Medici The House of Medici ( , ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici, in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the Mu ...

for his entire career.Klaus Lankheit, ''Florentinische Barockplastik'', 1962.

Name

He first went under the name ''Soldani'' but, claiming descent from the family of

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

Soldani of

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. ...

and from the

aristocratic Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...

Benzi family of Figline, he applied for and received, in 1693, an official letter acknowledging his nobility based on this

ancestry An ancestor, also known as a forefather, fore-elder or a forebear, is a parent or ( recursively) the parent of an antecedent (i.e., a grandparent, great-grandparent, great-great-grandparent and so forth). ''Ancestor'' is "any person from w ...

. From this date forward, he called himself, and is referred to in many documents as, ''Soldani Benzi''.

Life

Soldani began training in the Medici drawing school in Florence. He attracted the attention of

Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici Cosimo III de' Medici (14 August 1642 – 31 October 1723) was Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1670 until his death in 1723, the sixth and penultimate from the House of Medici. He reigned from 1670 to 1723, and was the elder son of Grand Duke Ferdinan ...

who sent Soldani to his grand-ducal

academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

to study under

Ciro Ferri Ciro Ferri (1634 – 13 September 1689) was an Italian Baroque sculptor and painter, the chief pupil and successor of Pietro da Cortona. He was born in Rome, where he began working under Cortona and with a team of artists in the extensive fresc ...

and Ercole Ferrata, and to train in coining. During his years in Rome (1678–81), he showed much promise and was asked by

Queen Christina of Sweden Christina ( sv, Kristina, 18 December (New Style) 1626 – 19 April 1689), a member of the House of Vasa, was Monarchy of Sweden, Queen of Sweden in Queen regnant, her own right from 1632 until her abdication in 1654. She succeeded her father ...

to create several medals. He started this enterprise but left it unfinished as Cosimo transferred the artist to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

to work with the famous medallist

Joseph Roettiers Joseph Roettiers (1635–1703) was a Flemish medallist active in England and France, and a member of the celebrated Roettier family of goldsmiths, silversmiths, and engravers. Roettiers was the son of Philip Roettiers, brother of John Roettie ...

. While there in 1682, Soldani came into contact with

Charles Le Brun Charles Le Brun (baptised 24 February 1619 – 12 February 1690) was a French painter, physiognomist, art theorist, and a director of several art schools of his time. As court painter to Louis XIV, who declared him "the greatest French artist of ...

and minister

Jean-Baptiste Colbert Jean-Baptiste Colbert (; 29 August 1619 – 6 September 1683) was a French statesman who served as First Minister of State from 1661 until his death in 1683 under the rule of King Louis XIV. His lasting impact on the organization of the country ...

. Learning that the artist was working on a medal portrait of

Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...

, a

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the official ...

Soldani refers to the courtier as "Mons.r Duca d'Homone" (possibly

Louis, duc d'Aumont Louis-Marie-Victor d'Aumont de Rochebaron (1632–1704) was a French Army officer and courtier who served Louis XIV in various capacities, including ''Premier Gentilhomme de la Chambre du Roi'' and as Governor of Paris. In 1666, he assumed by ...

who was very interested in the art of medals) introduced the young man to the king. The model for this medal of Louis XIV is now in the

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; french: Musée des beaux-arts de l'Ontario) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The museum is located in the Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, on Dundas Street West between McCaul and Bev ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

. Grand Duke Cosimo in the meantime decided that it was time for Soldani to return to Florence and take charge of the Grand-ducal Mint, the job he was meant to occupy from the very start. Upon the death of the current director, Soldani was officially made ''Maestro dei Coni e Custode della Zecca'' in 1688. As such he had his workshop and living quarters in 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 ...

. When he finally gave up work at the age of about 80, Soldani Benzi retired to his Villa Petrolo near

Bucine Bucine is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Arezzo in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about west of Arezzo. Subdivision Bucine borders the following municipalities: Castelnuovo Berardenga, Civit ...

where he died in 1740.

Work

Soldani developed into one of the finest bronze casters of his time in Europe. Though first specialising as a medallist, Soldani also produced bronze reliefs, bronze vases and free-standing figures and busts. For

Joseph Johann Adam, Prince of Liechtenstein Joseph Johann Adam (25 May 1690 – 17 December 1732) was the Prince of Liechtenstein from 1721 to his death. Born in Vienna, he was the only living son of Anton Florian, Prince of Liechtenstein and Eleonore Barbara von Thun und Hohenstein. J ...

, he produced a series of bronze copies of works of the Medici collection, mainly antique busts and figures but also after works by

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was ins ...

and Gianlorenzo Bernini. Klaus Lankheit recognized in a small bronze ''Pietà'' attributed to Soldani at the

Walters Art Museum The Walters Art Museum, located in Mount Vernon-Belvedere, Baltimore, Maryland, United States, is a public art museum founded and opened in 1934. It holds collections established during the mid-19th century. The museum's collection was amassed ...

a "balanced triangular composition" that is "almost a relief in form" and suggested that it had been composed first as a relief; A more elaborate version, with additional figures, in the Kress collection at the

Seattle Art Museum The Seattle Art Museum (commonly known as SAM) is an art museum located in Seattle, Washington, United States. It operates three major facilities: its main museum in downtown Seattle; the Seattle Asian Art Museum (SAAM) in Volunteer Park on Cap ...

, was identified as by Soldani by Ulrich Middeldorf. A second table bronze, ''Venus and the Wounded Adonis'', on a richly-mounted ebony base raised on bronze paw feet, is also at the Walters Art Museum. At rare intervals he exhibited terra cotta ''

bozzetti A ''maquette'' (French word for scale model, sometimes referred to by the Italian names ''plastico'' or ''modello'') is a scale model or rough draft of an unfinished sculpture. An equivalent term is ''bozzetto'', from the Italian word for "sketc ...

'' at the irregularly staged exhibitions of the

Accademia del Disegno The Accademia delle Arti del Disegno ("Academy of the Arts of Drawing") is an academy of artists in Florence, Italy. Founded as Accademia e Compagnia delle Arti del Disegno ("Academy and Company of the Arts of Drawing") on 13 January 1563 by ...

, Florence: in 1715 a ''Pietà'' in terracotta by "Sig. M.S." A highly finished terracotta relief, ''Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane'', doubtless intended as a ''

modello A modello (plural modelli), from Italian, is a preparatory study or model, usually at a smaller scale, for a work of art or architecture, especially one produced for the approval of the commissioning patron. The term gained currency in art circl ...

'' to be cast in bronze as a private devotional work, is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A major document of his career is his autobiography, dated 1718, correspondence, and the inventory taken after his death. A collection of his drawings is in the

. File:MMoCA 159( MA) Massimiliano Soldani-Benzi, Augustus Togatus - copie 2.jpg, ''Augustus Togatus'',

Mougins Museum of Classical Art The MACM, the Mougins Museum of Classical Art (Musée d’Art Classique de Mougins) is an art museum located in the village of Mougins, in the Alpes-Maritimes department, France. It is 30 minutes from Nice airport and 15 minutes from the centre o ...

Doccia

After his death, his heirs sold some of his wax models to marchese

Carlo Ginori Marchese Carlo Ginori (1702–1757), Italian politician (Tuscany) and founder of the Doccia porcelain factory in Sesto Fiorentino, near Florence, Italy. He pioneered the development of porcelain production, contemporary with Meissen, in mid-eighte ...

, who had them adapted by his chief modeller, Gaspero Bruschi, and reproduced in porcelain at his

Doccia porcelain The Doccia porcelain manufactory, at Doccia, a ''frazione'' of Sesto Fiorentino, near Florence, was in theory founded in 1735 by marchese Carlo Ginori near his villa, though it does not appear to have produced wares for sale until 1746. It has ...

manufactory near Florence. Thus Soldani's ''Apollo in His Chariot'', ''Venus Plucking the Wings of Cupid'' and ''Virtue Overpowering Vice'' all exist as Doccia porcelain groups.The Detroit Institute of Arts has examples
of all of these Doccia groups.

Notes

External links