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Looking for a context. Some considerations Neapolitan Painting
of the second half of the 17th Century
Author: Miguel Hermoso Cuesta (Universidad Complutense de
Madrid)
Introduction[1]
The bibliographical production on Neapolitan Baroque painting is
almost as extensive as the quantity of paintings produced in the
17thCentury. Every two months a new text appears on the market
written either in Italian[2], Spanish[3], English[4], French[5],
German[6]or even modern Greek[7]. Since 1981 there is even a
specialized journal dedicated to 17th Century Neapolitan art,
Ricerche sul 600napoletano, published annually and that in its
issues from 1998 until 2006 included a section titled "Per Luca
Giordano", dealingexclusively with this painter. This situation
makes it almost impossible to keep up to date on a subject that
progressively widens itsscope. It is not only difficult to read the
publications but often to find them.
Luckily for scholars exhibitions of Neapolitan Baroque painting
are periodically organized. They constitute an important updating
ofinformation and often include exhaustive bibliographic
references. Since the 1980s exhibitions have been presented in
America as wellas Europe[8]. Between them, Civilt del Seicento a
Napoli[9] marked a turning point in studies in the field, opening
the way forsubsequent shows such as the recent Ritorno al barocco.
Da Caravaggio a Vanvitelli[10], celebrated in Naples in 2008.
However such an abundance of written material can constitute on
occasions an obstacle for research, when the accumulation of
detailsprevents the researcher from having a clear view of the
overall artistic panorama or the evolution of painting in the city
during thebaroque period. A general vision must always take into
account works that have disappeared, works that influenced a
generation ofpainters but we can only imagine them from literary
references. Exhibitions logically do not include these works nor do
they includefrescos, which are some of the most important paintings
created in Naples in the 17th century - such as Giovanni Battista
Caracciolos(b.1578-d.1635) in the Royal Palace and Luca Giordano's
(b.1634-d.1702) in the Treasure Chapel of the Charterhouse of San
Martino.Even if they are mentioned in the catalogue notes these
works take second place to the canvasses on display. Currently
there is still nomonograph on Neapolitan baroque frescoes[11] nor
are there studies of some of the most important and active painters
in the periodsuch as Francesco de Mura (1696-1782) or Nicola
Malinconico (1663-1721). This simple fact puts in evidence the
opportunities forresearch that still exist on the Neapolitan
baroque.
Additionally studying works in situ either in Naples or in
Campania is often difficult, even when the works are in public
places such aschurches or museums they are often in spaces that are
not easily accessible or can only be visited during certain hours
or days,undoubtedly in many cases to reduce the possibilities of
robbery[12]. It is even more difficult to gain access to works in
privatecollections and sometimes public as well as the private
works are so poorly preserved that they cannot be easily
studied.
This complex and saturated panorama paradoxically creates an
important opportunity to test a wider focus that permits
differentapproximations to the context that gave birth to and
nurtured the Neapolitan baroque, showing the possibilities that
offer a topic that isonly apparently well studied[13].
An overview of Neapolitan painting in the second half of the
Seventeenth Century
The panorama of 17th Century Neapolitan painting that is
traditionally found in academic studies normally presents a lineal
evolutionbeginning with the arrival of Caravaggio in 1609. His
(supposed) naturalism would define a great part of the first half
of the centurythanks to his influence on local painters such as
Battistello and Carlo Sellito (1581-1614). This trend would be
reinforced by the activityof Jos de Ribera (1591-1652) who, towards
the end of his career embraced the neo-Venetian current that will
coexist with an earlyclassicism introduced in Naples by Domenico
Zampieri, known as Domenichino (1581-1641) and Giovanni Lanfranco
(1582-1647).Massimo Stanzione (1585-1658) and his disciples
tempered this style, blending classicism with local tenebrist
tendencies.
For the second half of the century the evolution is even
simpler[14], the moment that would mark a turning point in
Neapolitan paintingwas the arrival of Mattia Preti (1613-1699) in
the city, and above all the plague of 1656. The key works that
signaled the start ofNeapolitan baroque were the frescoes that
Preti painted on the city gates as ex-votive paintings celebrating
the end of the epidemic.After Preti left for Malta the place of the
most important painter in the city was occupied by Giordano, who
would dominate the artisticscene until his death, leaving behind a
substantial group of disciples and followers who would perpetuate
his style until the first half ofthe 18th Century, linking up with
the art of Francesco Solimena (1657 -1747) in an almost seamless
transition to the new century. Infact many of the exhibitions of
17th Century Neapolitan painting have used the subtitle "from
Caravaggio to Giordano"[15].
But this model of transition from naturalism to high baroque,
and from this to an incipient classicism, reinforced in the 18th
Century,resembles too closely the model established for Roman
painting of the period - which would advance from naturalism to the
classicismof Reni and Domenichino then to the high baroque of
Pietro da Cortona (1596-1669) to finish in the classicist synthesis
of Carlo Maratti(1625-1713). A model that could be applied to other
artistic centers such as Madrid, where court painting was defined
from the middleof the 17th Century by the activity of Velazquez,
who would influence Spanish art until the beginning of the 18th
Century, as shown bythe works of Juan Carreo de Miranda (1614-1685)
or Claudio Coello (1642-1693). Also the Parisian Acadmie Royale de
Peinture et deSculpture, would defend classicism as the most
appropriate style for the works commissioned by the king, a style
that triumphed in thepainting of Charles Le Brun (1619-1690) and
Pierre Mignard (1612-1695) despite the disputes in the academy
between followers ofPoussin and followers of Rubens.
Nevertheless the society of the period not only ignored these
categories, but even appreciated the stylistic diversity offered by
thesepainters as can be seen in collectors' inventories in the 17th
and 18th centuries. These collections included works with all
manner ofsubjects, formats, and artists. Simply observing the
altars of any Neapolitan baroque church one can see works in the
same chapel(that is, commissioned by the same client) from artists
that art history texts consider antagonistic. In this respect
Naples is differentfrom other European capitals in the period,
where although naturalism was prevalent at the beginning of the
17th Century there was aprogressive movement to more homogenous
styles that identified the painters from each city, although this
does not mean that thereweren't naturalistic painters at the end of
the century working throughout Italy.
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It is also difficult to clearly categorize a landscape, battle
scene, or still life as tenebrist, giordanesque, or classicist,
emphasizing thatthese generally used classifications seem to take
into account only history painting.
However between 1650 and 1700 there were a great number of
painters working in Naples who did not comfortably fit into
thesecategories. The aforementioned classification, which initially
seemed useful and logical becomes artificial to such an extent that
somescholars have created a different category of "independent"
painters, but without defining from what or whom were they
independent.This group would include Giacomo del Po (1652-1726) and
Domenico Antonio Vaccaro (1678-1745)[16] but could also include
otherslike Giovanni Battista Spinelli (active 1630-1660) and
Francesco Antonio Altobello (1637-1695) as well as some other
painters whooccasionally approached a giordanesque style such as
Giacomo Farelli (1624?-1701) or Guglielmo Borremans (1670-1744)
When one observes that the late works of Ribera such as the
Communion of the Apostles in the Charterhouse of San Martino,
achieve aperfect union of naturalism, classicism and the
neo-Venetian current that was so important in Rome in the 1630s,
perhaps theNeapolitan works of Mattia Preti, so monumental and
tenebrist, and painted after the relative failure of his frescoes
in Sant'Andrea dellaValle[17]- should be viewed as an involution
rather than a progression.
Also it must be taken into consideration that although Giordano
influenced Neapolitan painting for many years he was absent from
thecity during ten years, between 1692 and 1702, when he was Court
painter to Charles II in Madrid. He left a well-organized
workshopthat continued to receive important commissions although it
could not compete with the rising fame of Francesco Solimena after
thesuccess of his frescos for the sacristy of San Paolo Maggiore.
And although there is a trend to classicism in the first half of
the century,the most important representative of this style in
Naples, Francesco di Maria (1623?-1690), was active practically the
entire second halfof the century until his death in 1690 and Andrea
Vaccaro (1604-1670) continued to receive commissions until the year
of his death in1670.
These examples show that reality is more complex than what is
usually presented in art history texts and that the Neapolitan
artisticmilieu is much more varied than is usually supposed.
Knowledge of the historical context in which all of these trends
appeared helps tobetter understand the period.
The context of Neapolitan baroque painting
In the 1600s Naples was the most populated city in Europe. Carlo
Celano wrote in 1692 that "Napoli una delle pi populate
cittd'Europa. Baster dire che nell'anno 1656 fuerono uccise dalla
peste quattrocento cinquanta mila persone, per un conto fatto
allagrossa; e pure non v'era contrada che non vi fusse rimasto
qualche d'uno; hora la gente cos propagata ed accresciuta da'
regnicoli eda altri forastieri, che si fa conto d'haver cinquecento
mila habitanti"[18], with data that were not entirely correct as
moderncalculations place the population in 1500 at 125,000 growing
to 300,000 by 1600, whereas the second most populated city in
thekingdom, Lecce, had between 15.000 and 30.000 inhabitants during
the 16th and 17th centuries[19]. Naples continued to be the
mostpopulated city in Italy until the 19th century (and probably
the most overpopulated too).
The great expansion of Naples happened precisely during the 16th
and early 17th centuries and was motivated by a series of
changesinitiated by the viceroy Pedro Alvarez de Toledo aimed at
making Naples a modern city[20]. The viceroy ordered that the
streets bepaved, reorganized the water supply and sewers, renovated
and enlarged the city walls, and created the Spanish Quarter, the
ViaToledo, the Hospital and Bank of San Giacomo degli Spagnoli
(fig. 1). These changes displaced the center of the city towards
the westin a process that reached its highest point with the
creation of a new royal palace and would continue with the
urbanization of thecoastline of Chiaia and the creation of the
Strada di Medinacoeli opened by Luis Francisco de la Cerda y
Aragon, IX Duke of Medinaceli(viceroy between 1695 and 1702)
[21].
Among the aims of these reforms, in addition to improving the
city's defense works was the objective of attracting the
countryaristocracy to the capital, in this way it was expected that
the nobles would cease being feudal lords and would become
loyalcourtiers[22]. It was also expected to concentrate all the
courts, magistracies and bureaucracy of the Kingdom in the capital,
as well asthe only university and manufactures too[23].
The status of the capital was improved with the creation of
favorable tax conditions for its inhabitants, or at least more
benevolent thanthe ones practiced in the countryside and smaller
cities. The immediate effect of this decision was immigration from
rural areas[24] asNaples became a promised land, a place where
common people could improve their lives. Even if they had to work
in precarious jobs orsleep on the street, they were reluctant to go
back to the countryside, where they knew life was undoubtedly
worse[25].
The price that was paid for this development was the loss of
balance with the province, an area that encompassed a large part of
Italy,which was slowly but progressively sinking into poverty as it
lacked the basic infrastructures to progress. At the same time the
capitalwas transforming itself into "a symbol and an instrument of
royal power"[26].
To achieve the appearance of a modern capital, Naples needed a
new urban planning. Via Toledo was designed as the new center
thatwould make visible the power and riches of the city through the
building of new palaces to relocate the vice regal nobility and
itsservants and also through the renovation of those already
existing. The process would culminate with the construction of the
RoyalPalace, designed by Domenico Fontana and planned to welcome
and house King Philip III during a visit to the city that finally
was notcarried through[27].
However this seat and symbol of power, was a center for a
changeable power as the viceroys were in possession of their office
forterms of three years[28], thus they were not able to create
artistic posts similar to the "pintor de cmara" in Madrid [29]. In
thisrespect, the Neapolitan situation also cannot be compared to
Papal Rome, where a temporal political power can be found, but
never sotemporary as the one in Naples. Besides, the viceroys
personalities varied greatly; some of them were important
collectors, like thecount of Monterrey or the Marquis of Carpio[30]
while others, like Cardinal Pascual de Aragn, were more interested
in charitableinstitutions or the search for religious
relics[31].
The same problem of temporality was present in the Church, the
succession in the office of Cardinal Archbishop of Naples of
suchimportant personalities as Innico Caracciolo or Ascanio
Filomarino permitted receiving important commissions, such as
Giordanos topaint a series of large canvases of images of saints
for the central nave and transept of the gothic cathedral,
commissioned byCaracciolo or the new ceiling of Carmine Maggiore
commissioned by Filomarino, however there was little stability nor
certainty ofsubsequent commissions as was true of the rest of the
possible patrons in monasteries and convents whose offices were
elective and
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were rotative.
The role of maecenas was carried out by part of the local
nobility who collected art for the prestige of having a gallery,
such as thePrince of Tarsia, the Prince of Cellamare, the Duke of
Maddaloni or the Duke of Avalos and by a rich international
merchant class[32]who would become an important group rivaling the
aristocracy in artistic patronage[33]. As a port and commercial hub
Naples wascosmopolitan and had a large foreign population, some of
which such as the French, English, and Ragusans had their
ownconsulates[34], whereas others such as the Germans, Lombards,
Florentines, Genoese, and logically the Spanish had their
ownchurches. The importance of these congregations varied. Some
decorated their temples with works imported from their home cities
andin the church of San Giovanni deFlorentini there is an important
group of works by Marco Pino (1521-1583) and Giovanni Balducci
(ca.1560-ca. 1630)[35] and the Virgin with child over the City of
Genoa and the Crucifixion by Domenico Fiasella (1589-1669)
wereoriginally in the church of San Giorgio de' Genovesi[36]. They
also commissioned works form artists active in Naples and from the
sameSan Giorgio came Battistello's Miracle of Saint Anthony and the
widely known works by Caravaggio that were commissioned for the
nowdisappeared church of SantAnna de' Lombardi which also contained
works by Fabrizio Santafede (1560-1635), Battistello, and
CarloSellito[37]. The wealth of the foreign merchants iwas notable,
as some of the Genoese merchants eventually became part of the
localaristocracy such as the Berio family, Marquis of Salza[38].
The best known examples however were undoubtedly the Flemings
GaspareRoomer and Jan Vandenenynden who created important art
collections and were patrons of many Neapolitan painters[39]. The
first notonly possessed a palace near the Via Toledo, later sold to
the Duke of Maddaloni[40], but became an important buyer of old
andcontemporary Neapolitan painting[41] which he occasionally sent
to Flanders[42]. He also financed the construction of the
monasteryof Santa Maria Maddalena dePazzi[43]. The second [44]
possessed the Zevallos Stigliano Palace (fig. 2) on the Via Toledo
and formedan art collection comparable to that of Roomer. Among the
works included in this collection were The Rest on the Flight to
Egypt byNicolas Poussin (New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art),
Ribera's Saint Sebastian (Naples, Museo de Capodimonte) and the
Banquet ofHerod by Rubens (Edinburgh, National Gallery of Scotland)
which profoundly influenced Neapolitan painting when it arrived in
the city in1640[45]. His son Ferdinand "quanto rico tanto
virtuoso"[46] was ennobled with the title of Marquis of Castelnuovo
and had a villaconstructed in the Vomero with views of the Gulf of
Naples.[47]. He was an active and pious maecenas financing the
tabernacle of thechurch of San Luigi di Palazzo, one of the most
important in vice regal Naples[48]. One of his descendants, Michele
Gallo Vandeneyndenbecame bishop of Capri, demonstrating the
enormous social mobility that existed in the City, very different
from the court in Madrid.This helps explain how Naples became in
the popular imagination a promised land where anything was
possible. The power of themerchant class and the diversity of their
origins and tastes help explain the enormous variety of Neapolitan
painting in the second halfof the 17th century.
This social mobility and unprecedented growth in the capital
explains also the social instability that produced class tensions
culminatingin the famous rebellion of Masaniello[49]. The economic
power of the new merchant elites was questioned and there were no
lack ofcritical references to Roomer and Vandeneynden who were
classified as "miserabilissimi fiamenghi delle pi povere famiglie
che daquelle vaste Provincie venissero in Napoli a negoziare, ed
ambidue straricchiti con i partiti di corte"[50].
The rebellion of 1646 marked the beginning of the progressive
economic decline of Naples, which in the second half of the 17th
centurywas also affected by a series of natural disasters. The
first of these and the surely the most important was the plague of
1656 whichdecimated the population and took the lives of some of
the most important artists of the period such as Bernardo Cavallino
(1616-1656), Francesco de Rosa (1607-1656) or the brothers Cesare
(ca. 1605-ca. 1652) and Francesco Fracanzano (1612-ca. 1656) as
wellas some of the wealthiest patrons including Giovan Camillo
Cacace "che per le sue rare virt e sapere arriv ad esser dal nostro
granmonarca delle Spagne assunto alla toga di presidente della
Regia Camera, e poscia a quella del Supremo Collateral Consiglio, e
diregente della Cancelleria", according to Carlo Celano, who also
indicated that he accumulated a fortune of a half a million
escudos[51].Lastly the earthquakes of 1688 and 1694, preceded by an
eruption of Vesuvius also influenced the social and artistic
situation. On onehand the natural disasters were not favorable for
patronage but the need to reconstruct churches and palaces created
newopportunities for the artists that survived the disasters.
During the rebellion of Masaniello civic buildings including the
Customs House [52], the Theater of San Bartolomeo [53] and the
Palaceof the Prince Bisignano[54], as well as religious buildings
in the case of the church of Santa Maria Visitapoveri[55] and the
church ofSanta Marta[56], whose reconstruction offered an important
opportunity for the elderly Andrea Vaccaro who received the
commissionfor the painting of Saint Martha for the main altar.
The plague of 1656 reduced the competition for the surviving
artists but also the demand for paintings and the most immediate
effectwas the reduction of prices of paintings. Despite these facts
new works were commissioned, almost always as ex-votive works, one
ofthe most important was the Church of Santa Maria del Pianto,
constructed with the donation of the Count of Pearanda and
whosealtars were painted by Andrea Vaccaro and Luca Giordano,[57]
indicating that for their contemporaries their differing styles
wereperfectly valid and compatible in contrast to theories that
appear repeatedly in modern art history scholarship.
Logically the events that had the most direct repercussion on
Neapolitan art were the earthquakes. The earthquake of 1688 was
themost notable and had the most effect on artistic patrimony,
seriously affecting the structure of the cathedrals of Benevento,
Aversa,and Salerno (fig. 3) as well as other buildings in Campania.
In Naples the damage was also extensive; cracks appeared in the
walls ofthe cathedral causing damage to Giordanos large canvases.
Falling stucco destroyed the pulpit, which had to be
reconstructed.[58]
Many of the aristocratic palaces were also damaged including
those of the Carafa and Spinelli families in the Piazza San
DomenicoMaggiore, where the Dominican convent was also affected.
The Church of St. Severino and St. Sosio also suffered
damages[59].
However the most emblematic monuments that were destroyed in the
earthquake were the facade of the Church of San Paolo Maggioreand
the Cupola of Ges Nuovo. The first still conserved elements of the
temple of Castor and Pollux of the ancient Neapolis andaccording to
Celano was the "pi bella et antica macchina ch'havevamo nella
nostra citt. Machina che era di meraviglia a' forestieri, edi gran
decoro alla nostra patria"[60], while the second was one of the
largest in the city and was decorated with frescos painted
byLanfranco. Some of the altars and chapels were also destroyed
such as the chapel of Saint Ignatius Loyola and the cupola of the
Merlinochapel, which Giordano, had only finished a few months
earlier[61].
Logically the destruction of these works created an opportunity
for many artists and for the city, which was constantly modernizing
andinvesting in artistic renovation. In this manner Paolo de
Matteis (1662-1728) had the opportunity to paint the frescos in the
new cupolaof Ges Nuovo, reconstructed by Arcangelo Guglielmelli
between 1693 and 1694[62].
The strategies of Neapolitan painters
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In a heavily populated city subjected to constant political,
social, and physical changes, it was without a doubt difficult to
find stablepatronage to make a living as a painter. Additionally
its position as capital of the Kingdom and a center of institutions
and industryattracted painters from many regions. They were
attracted by the constant demand for works to embellish the
collections of thearistocracy and wealthy merchants, works for the
viceroy and for the decoration of his Spanish foundations[63] and
commissions frommonasteries and churches which were in constant
renovation because of the earthquakes and eruptions. At the same
time it wasdifficult to find commissions in the provinces because
the wealth and patrons were concentrated in the capital.
This led artists to migrate to the city, also despite being part
of the Spanish empire, it was not necessary to be a member of a
guild orto pass an examination to paint as was the case in
Spain[64].
At the same time this situation meant that the principal problem
for an artist to make his way in Naples was the enormous number
ofpotential competitors. A situation that existed since the
beginning of the 1600s as Bernardo de Domeninici indicates in his
biography ofRibera, describing the difficulties for Ribera to
obtain commissions in his early years because "the great number of
contemporarypainters among which figured important artists who
received all the commissions"[65]. Neapolitan painters responded to
this situation,although not always in the most satisfactory
manner.
Without going to the extremes of trying to murder their
competitors, as apparently occurred with Domenichino[66], Guido
Reni (1575-1642)[67] and Giuliano Finelli (1601-1653)[68] if we
believe Bernardo de Dominici and Giovanni Battista Passeri. The
brothers Cesare(Bisceglie ca. 1605 - Barletta ca 1652) and
Francesco Fracanzano (Monopoli 1612 - Naples ca 1656)[69] can be
considered prototypesof the talented provincial artists who came to
the capital. In the mid 1620s they entered in contact with Riberas
workshop, the mostimportant of the period, where they learned to
superficially imitate his technique and adopt the neoventian style
so important all overItaly in the 1630s. They progressively adopted
the classicism of Stanzione and also the high baroque of Lanfranco
demonstrating aclear effort to keep up with the latest trends to be
able to present a modern product to their clients. At the same time
they did notignore a more conservative clientele and continued to
produce works with a marked tenebrist style until the end of their
brief careers.Francesco, following tradition prevalent at least
since the Middle Ages married into the family of another painter
when he wedGiovanna, the only sister of Salvator Rosa (1615-1673).
Despite their efforts and despite having obtained some
prestigiouscommissions including one of the altars in the transept
of Ges Vecchio and one in the Church of Trinit dei Pellegrini, both
died inpoverty according to Bernardo de Dominici[70], surviving by
painting small devotional images that they sold door to door. De
Dominiciponders at the beginning of their biography if this was so
because of "a certain combination of unknown causes vulgarly called
luck" orto the excess of painters working in Naples[71], an
explanation he insists on throughout his text. The same author
accuses Cesare offomenting criticism of the painting of the altar
of the Church of San Francesco Saverio, a work by Salvator Rosa,
which was removedfrom the altar and replaced with a new painting by
Cesare. This suggests another easily used manoeuver against artists
whose worksare in public places and exposed to all sorts of
criticism. Of course this is a risky tactic as it is probable that
it will eventually backfire.
To avoid falling into poverty, many painters in 17th century
Naples endeavored to locate their workshops near the economic
center ofthe city, Piazza Carit. Located at the end of Via Toledo
it was the site of an important daily market and close to the
palaces of thearistocracy and to the inns where many visitors and
potential clients stayed.[72] The area around the Piazza became an
authenticartistic neighborhood, which explains also the high prices
of rents in the zone[73] and the fact that many artists rented
workshop spaceand ocassionally shared the expenses with other
painters.[74]
Another way to publicize work was to make engravings of one's
paintings, as Lanfranco did with his series of Evangelists in
thependentives in the cupola of the Ges Nuovo or the Apostles from
the nave of the Charterhouse of San Martino[75] (fig. 6). Ribera
didthe same with his Drunken Silenus or the equestrian portrait of
Juan Jose de Austria, going one step further in engraving the
plateshimself[76] saving the cost of the engraver and controlling
the entire production process. Besides these prints, Ribera
engraved aseries of compositions that were not copies of his
paintings publicizing his abilities as an artist to a wider public.
Giordano took up thisidea at the beginning of his career.
In the same line of offering the works of the great masters at
more accessible prices was the tactic of replicating paintings in
theworkshop or adapting the quality of the paintings to the pocket
of the buyer as Giordano did with his famous three brushes of
gold,silver, and bronze[77].
He was perhaps the most representative artist in developing
strategies in Naples to obtain commissions never leaving a single
elementto chance. One way he used to minimize risks was to
collaborate on occasions with other artists such as Giuseppe Recco
(1634-1695)[78] and Ascanio Luciani (ca. 1621-1706)[79], painting
the figures in their still lives and landscapes and thus increasing
the priceof the painting by converting a still life or painting of
ruins into a narrative scene or landscape with figures (fig.
8).
Occasionally to avoid losing a commission or to find new
clients, he went to the extreme of donating his works for free,
although thisonly occurred with works that would be on public
display. He did this with his St. Nicholas saving the cup bearer in
the church of SantaBrigida in Naples when he was competing with
Farelli and Stanzione and he did this again in 1668 when he sent,
without a previouscommission, an Assumption of the Virgin for the
Church of La Salute in Venice (fig. 9) in substitute for a work
ordered from Volterranobut that had not been delivered.[80]
The success of this tactic is demonstrated by the two large
canvasses that Giordano painted for this church - The Birth of the
Virgin andthe Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple and that he
also painted the cupola of the transept and the ceiling of the
Sacristy in SantaBrigida in Naples.
Lastly given the success of artist's biographies in Italy, he
decided to write his autobiography in 1681[81]. Which he later
modified andrevised and which would serve as the base for the
biographies of Francesco Saverio Baldinucci [82] and for De
Dominici whosebiography was published in Naples in 1729[83] (fig.
10), He was one of the most discussed painter by his contemporaries
with at leastseven biographies written between 1681 y 1743[84].
It cannot be ignored that in the extensive territories of the
Kingdom of Naples there were also potential clients who thought
works fromthe capital gave prestige, as all that was produced in
Naples was associated immediately with quality.
Many of the regional centers counted with contacts in Naples,
for example the monks of the Charterhouse of San Lorenzo in Padula
hada guest house in the Pendino neighborhood that they used when
they had business to attend to in the capital[85] and the Jesuits
whohad their principal residence in the Ges Nuovo considered the
whole kingdom as one religious province. Also the concentration
oftribunals and industry in the city created a large transient
population, residing in the city while they settled their suits or
closed theircontracts. These people served as intermediaries
between provincial patrons and the artists residing in Naples, who
could offer
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competitive prices to open new markets or could collaborate with
other artists to send works to a city with less artistic
competition.Doubtless it was in this manner that Giordano obtained
the commission to paint the frescos at Montecassino or that de
Matteis went toTaranto to paint the Chapel of San Cataldo (fig.
11). Also there is a notable increase in works produced in Naples
in the provincial citiesthat are closer to the capital as can be
seen by the works of Nicola Malinconico in Capri and Sorrento,
those of Giuseppe Simonelli inAversa, and those of Giacinto de
Populi in Salerno.
Conclusions
The exceptional social, economic, and geographic characteristics
of Naples in the 17th century help explain the great diversity
ofpaintings produced in the city where naturalist, classicist and
high baroque works were produced simultaneously. This
diversityresponds to a multi-form demand that proceeded from
different social classes as well as from the necessity for the
painters to find aniche in a saturated market. This impulsed a
series of novel strategies for obtaining commissions and created an
artistic panoramaunique in Europe for its variety and quality.
Naples was far from being considered secondary or provincial.
Giambattista Vico capturedthis ferment in 1709 when he wrote "In
the fields of poetry, oratory, painting, sculpture, and other fine
arts, based on the imitation ofnature, we possess a wealth of
supremely accomplished productions, on which the admiration of
posterity has conferred the prestige ofarchetypal exemplarity.
Thanks to the guidance offered by these masterworks, we are able to
imitate, correctly and easily, Nature ather best. The invention of
printing places at our disposal an enormous number of books. Hence,
our scholars are not compelled torestrict their competence to the
knowledge of one or another author, but can master a multiple,
diversified, almost boundless domain ofculture."[86]
IMAGES
Fig.1. Vatican City, Galleria delle Carte Geografiche,
Naples
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Fig. 2. Cosimo Fanzago, Palazzo Zevallos Stigliano, Naples,
(portone)https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Palazzo_Zevallos_(Naples)#mediaviewer/File:PalazzoZevallosNaples
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Fig. 3. Salerno Cathedral, Interior
Fig. 4. Carlo Celano Notitie del bello, dell'antico e del
curioso della citt di Napoli, (edition of 1724), Illustration
showing the facade ofSan Paolo Maggiore before and after the
earthquake of 1688
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Fig. 5. Francesco Fracanzano, Death of St, Joseph, Naples,
Trinit dei Pellegrini
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Fig. 6. F. de Louvemont, St. Andrew (after Giovanni
Lanfranco)
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Fig. 7. Luca Giordano, Assumption of the Virgin, Venice, La
Salute, photo by Wolfgang
Moroderhttps://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Interior_of_Santa_Maria_della_Salute_(Venice)#mediaviewer/File:Santa_Maria_della_Salute,_altare_dell%27Assunta.jpg
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Fig. 8. Illustration from Bernardo de Dominici Vita del
cavaliere d. Luca Giordano, Naples, 1729
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Fig. 9. Paolo de Matteis, Glory of St. Cataldus, Taranto,
Cathedral,http://archeotaranto.altervista.org/archeota/taras78/Gloria_di_San_Cataldo_Cappellone
[1] This article is part of a larger study, still in progress,
on the Neapolitan painting of the second half of the 17th Century.
I wish tothank Renato Ruotolo for his suggestions and Richard Gum
for his help with the translation of the text.
[2] Being the most recent N. Spinosa. Grazia e tenerezza in
posa: Bernardo Cavallino e il suo tempo 1616-1656. Roma, Ugo
Bozzi.2013.
[3] M. Hermoso Cuesta. Lucas Jordn y la Corte de Madrid. Una
dcada prodigiosa. Zaragoza, Caja de Ahorros de la Inmaculada.
2008.
[4] M. Bull. Inventing Falsehood, Making Truth. Princeton
University Press. 2013.
[5] A. Zezza. "Une histoire de l'art sans hros? tudes rcentes
sur la peinture napolitaine du XVIIe sicle". Perspective 1 (2011),
pp.435-459. It can be read on
http://perspective.revues.org/973#text (last view 15 April 2014,
13:14 h).
[6] S. Ebert-Schifferer and E. Kieven. Der Fuerst unter allen
lebenden Malern: Francesco Solimena und sein Werk zur Zeit
derosterreichischen Vizeknige in Neapel (1707-1734). Himmer Verlag
GmbH. 2011.
[7] As it is the case of P. Ioannou The Life and Work of
Belisario Corenzio. Crete University Press (in greek). 2011.
[8] For instance Pintura napolitana. De Caravaggio a Giordano,
celebrated in the Museo Nacional del Prado in 1985. A taste for
Angels.Neapolitan painting in North America 1650-1750, held in Yale
University in 1987 o Unter dem Vesuv. Kunst und Kuenstler vom 17.
biszum 19. Jahrhundert in Neapel und seinem Umfeld aus der Sammlung
Harrach, celebrated in the Liechtenstein Museum of Vienna
in2006.
[9] VV.AA. Civilt del Seicento a Napoli. Naples, Electa. 1984.
It was reprinted in 1998. The importance and success of the
exhibitionmade it possible to held different versions of it
(dedicated only to painting) in London, Paris and Madrid.
[10] VV.AA. Ritorno al barocco. Da Caravaggio a Vanvitelli.
Naples, arte'm. 2008.
[11] Taking into account that the subject has been included in
general overviews and has specialized contributions like E.
Fumagalli."Decorazione barocca tra Roma e Napoli" in Paragone, n
71. 2007, pp. 61-79. I wish to thanks Sabrina Iorio her indications
about theexistence of this text.
[12] One of the most difficult problems to solve in the area,
Cfr. VV.AA. Furti d'Arte. Il patrimonio artstico napoletano, lo
scempio e la
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speranza. 1981-1994. Naples, Elio de Rosa-Soprintendenza per i
beni artistici e storici di Napoli. 1994.
[13] As did G. Labrot. Documents for the History of Collecting.
Italian inventories 1. Collections of Paintings in Naples
1600-1780. TheProvenance Index of the Getty Art History Information
Program. Munich, London, Paris, New York, K.G. Saur 1992 and, more
recentlyCh. R. Marshall. "Naples" in R.E. Spear and Ph. Sohm
(eds.). Painting for profit. The economic lives of
Seventeenth-Century Italianpainters. Yale University Press. 2010,
pp. 115-143.
[14] In part because scholars pay less attention to it. To cite
only one example, in the volume Il secolo d'oro of F. Abbate's work
Storiadell'arte nell'Italia meridionale. Rome, Donzelli Editore.
2002 naturalist painting occupies pages 3 to 101 the classicist
period goes frompage 123 to page 140 and all the Baroque from page
135 to page 247.
[15] For example the one held in Madrid in 1985. The exhibition
celebrated in Naples in 1994 had as subtitle the sentence
"DaBattistello a Luca Giordano", while the one shown in the Real
Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid in 2008 was
heldunder the title Seicento Napoletano. Del naturalismo al
barroco.
[16] M.A. Pavone. Pittori napoletani del primo Settecento. Fonti
e documenti. Npoles. Liguori Editore. 1997 The autor speaks in
pp.126-136 of a "percorso degli indipendenti" in which includes
these two artists.
[17] Even Cassiano dal Pozzo stated that "le pitture nuove d'un
tal Cav. Calabrese, scoperte in Sant'Andrea della Valle nella
Tribunahavendo il paragone con quelle di Domenico Zampieri alias
Domenichino, che ci stan sopra e quelle della cupola del
Lanfranchi, fannocontrasto tale, che i pi non le stimano a
propsito" quoted in A. Coliva "Sant'Andrea della Valle" en VV.AA.
Mattia Preti. Il CavalierCalabrese. Naples, Electa Napoli. 1999, p.
68.
[18] C. Celano. Notitie del bello, dell'antico e del curioso
della citt di Napoli. Naples. 1692. Giornata Prima, p. 23.
[19] The data in L. Di Mauro and G. Vitolo. Storia illustrata di
Napoli. Pisa, Pacini Editore. 2006, pp. 129-130 and G. Galasso
"Unacapitale dell'impero" in VV.AA. Espaa y Npoles. Coleccionismo y
mecenazgo virreinales en el siglo XVII. Madrid, Centro de
EstudiosEuropa Hispnica. 2009, pp. 39-61. Di Mauro and Vitolo
remind that in 1500 Milan and Venice had approximately 100.000
inhabitantsand that in 1600 their population had grown up
respectively to 120.000 and 151.000 inhabitants.
[20] And to forget, at least in part, its French medieval past,
that was still remembered in 1632, when Jean-Jacques Bouchard
wrote(intentionally) that Neapolitan people still stated "che
Napoli dei Francesi, perch loro l'hanno fatta quello ch'ella "
quoted in L. DiMauro and G. Vitolo 2006, p. 120.
[21] The urban planning of Naples in C. De Seta Le citt nella
Storia d'Italia. Napoli. Roma-Bari. 1980.
[22] G. Galasso 2009, op. cit. p. 41.
[23] As L. Di Mauro and G. Vitolo 2006, p. 129, say only in
Naples was allowed to make textiles of wool and silk, with the
exception ofCatanzaro for silk factories.
[24] Part of these conditions were tax exemptions and a
political price for bread, that was in this way not subject to
market fluctuationsvid. L. Di Mauro and G. Vitolo 2006, p. 127.
[25] The idea is Giuseppe Galasso's, quoted in L. Di Mauro y G.
Vitolo 2006, p. 132, who does not provide information as to where
tofind it in Galasso's bibliography. Galasso 2009, p. 42 notes the
quotation by Girolamo Lippomano, Venetian ambassador in 1575,
sayingthat people went to Naples "sia per le franchigie grandi che
vi sono che per le commodit che vi hanno i poveri di guadagnarsi il
vivere,essendo da lavorare in qualsivoglia tempo abbondantemente e
non essendo tiranneggiati dagli ufficiali che sono per il
Regno."
[26] Cfr. Galasso 2009 op. cit. p. 41.
[27] P. C. Verde. Domenico Fontana a Napoli: 1592-1607. Naples,
Electa Napoli. 2007.
[28] With frequent exceptions, specially during the 16th
Century, cfr. J.L. Colomer "Espaa, Npoles y sus virreyes" in VV.AA.
Espaa yNpoles. Coleccionismo y mecenazgo virreinales en el siglo
XVII. Madrid, Centro de Estudios Europa Hispnica. 2009, pp.
13-37.
[29] Cfr. VV.AA. Espaa y Npoles. Coleccionismo y mecenazgo
virreinales en el siglo XVII. Madrid, Centro de Estudios
EuropaHispnica. 2009.
[30] L. de Frutos. El templo de la Fama. Alegora del Marqus del
Carpio. Madrid, Fundacin BBVA. 2009.
[31] N. de Estnaga y Echevarra. El cardenal de Aragn
(1626-1677). Pars. 1929-1930. On his period as viceroy and the
relationshipwith his succesor, don Pedro Antonio de Aragn cfr. D.
Carri-Invernizzi. El gobierno de las imgenes. Ceremonial y
mecenazgo en laItalia espaola de la segunda mitad del siglo XVII.
Madrid, Iberoamericana-Vervuert. 2008. On his artistic patronage in
Spain cfr. J.Nicolau Castro. "El cardenal Virrey Don Pascual de
Aragn y su Monasterio toledano de Madres Capuchinas" en Ricerche
sul' 600napoletano. Saggi e documenti. Electa Napoli. 1999, pp.
77-89 and M. Hermoso Cuesta. "'Boccato di cardinale'. Algo ms sobre
donPascual de Aragn y el convento de capuchinas de Toledo" in La
clausura femenina en el Mundo Hispnico: una fidelidad secular.
SanLorenzo de El Escorial, Centro de Estudios Superiores de El
Escorial. 2011, pp. 807-824.
[32] G. Galasso 2009, op. cit. p. 41 reminds that cardinal
Granvelle during his visit to the city observed that in Naples the
commonpeople was richer than the aristocracy.
[33] On the important role of Neapolitan bourgeoisie as patron
of the arts in this period cfr. G. Borrelli "La Borghesia
napoletana dellaseconda met del Seicento e la sua influenza sulla
evoluzione del gusto Barocco e Rococ" in Ricerche sul' 600
napoletano. 1986-1993.
[34] G. Galasso 2009, op. cit. p. 44.
[35] VV.AA. Napoli Sacra. Guida alle chiese della citt . 13
itinerario. Npoles, Elio de Rosa Editore. 1996, p. 828 (text by
RenatoRuotolo).
[36] Today in the church of the Piet dei Turchini, on this
building cfr. VV.AA. Napoli Sacra. Guida alle chiese della citt .
10 itinerario.
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Npoles, Elio de Rosa Editore. 1995, p. 598 (text by Renato
Ruotolo).
[37] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Terza, pp. 8-12. Who says
that the three paintings by Caravaggio were in the Finaroli
familychapel.
[38] G. Galasso 2009, op. cit. p. 45.
[39] On the subject cfr. R. Ruotolo. Mercanti-collezionisti
fiamminghi a Napoli: Gaspare Roomer e i Van den Eynden. Massa
Lubrense,Tipogr. G. Scarpati. 1982.
[40] As stated by C. Celano 1692 op. cit. Giornata Terza, p.
4.
[41] According to C. Celano 1692 op. cit. Giornata Terza, p. 95
Roomer bought a series of black and white paintings by Polidoro
daCaravaggio that were in the palace of Berardino Rota, placed in
the vico di Santa Chiara.
[42] C. Celano 1692 op. cit. Giornata Quinta, p. 43 speaking on
the church of San Giacomo degli Spagnoli affirms that "Sulla
portamaggiore vi un quadro dove sta espresso il Sacro Natale del
Signore: opera questa di Bartolomeo Passanti nostro napolitano, che
fuil miglior allievo che sia uscito dalla scola di Giuseppe di
Ribera. Molte opere di questo artefice sono state passate di mano
del maestro;in Napoli sono rimaste poche opere di quest'huomo,
essendo che dal gi detto fu Gasparo Ruemer fiamengo sono state la
maggior parteraccolte ed inviate in Fiandra."
[43] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Settima, p. 25-26 states
that "Il gi fu Gasparo Reumer fiamengo, huomo ricchissimo, divoto
aquesto lugo e divotissimo della beata Maria Maddalena de' Pazzi,
havendo promossa la sua canonizzatione, e desiderando che in
Napolivi fusse una chiesa alla santa dedicata, oper col consenso
delle monache e breve del sommo pontefice Clemente X che questa
chiesadi monache carmelitane fusse intitulata Santa Maria Madalena
de' Pazzi del Sagramento; ed a questo effetto dot il monasterio
dilarghissime rendite, lasciandoli molti suoi famosi palazzi, e
tutto il mobile che vi si trovava, del quale i quadri solo valutati
venivano in60 mila scudi."
[44] The most recent synthesis on this subject is R. Ruotolo
"Jan Vandeneynden, mercante fiammingo a Napoli" in Dimore signorili
aNapoli. Palazzo Zevallos Stigliano e il mecenatismo aristocrtico
dal XVI al XX secolo. Npoles, arte'm-Intesa San Paolo. 2013, pp.
431-447.
[45] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Quinta, pp. 164-165 after
saying that the palace was designed by Cosimo Fanzago for
GiovanniZevallos, and that subsequently passed to the Vandeneynden
family, indicates that "In questo palazzo vi una galleria de'
quadri dellebelle che sono in Napoli, e veramente vi si vedeano
bellissime dipinture, et in quantit, de' famosi maestri cos antichi
come moderni, etoltre di quelli di Luca d'Olanda, d'Annibal
Caracci, del Pusini et altri, ve n'erano de quanti dipintori sono
stati di grido nel secolo (p. 165)nostro, ed una quantit di
Giuseppe di Rivera detto lo Spagnoletto, e fra questo il tanto
rinomato quadro del San Sebastiano; vi era unquadro di 12 palmi a
Traverso nel quale sta espresso il pranso di Herode con molti
commensali et Herodiade che presenta la testa delsantissimo
precursore Battista, opera del famoso pennello di Pietro Paolo
Ruben, e veramente dipintura che pi non pu portare dispirito e di
espressione, essendo che in ogni volto vi si scorge il suo affetto;
non mi distendo a nominarli tutti per non allungare questenotitie.
Hora questi quadri son divisi alle figliole del Marchese, che si
son maritate con diversi signori."
[46] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Sesta, p. 55.
[47] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Sesta, p. 55. On the
villa, still existent cfr. L. Rocco. Villa Belvedere. Cronache di
arte, amore emusica di una antica residenza napoletana. Npoles,
Voyage Pittoresque. 2004.
[48] C. Celano 1692 op. cit. Giornata Quinta, p. 126 states that
in the church "L'altar maggiore composto viene di finissimi e
pretiosimarmi; vi un raro tabernacolo di rame dorato e di pietre
pretiose, ed il tutto fu fatto a spese di Giovanni Vandeneynden
fiamengo edel marchese suo figliuolo, delli quali se ne veggono
l'armi ne' piedistalli dell'altare."
[49] The most recent synthesis in A. Hugon. La insurreccin de
Npoles, 1647-1648. La construccin del acontecimiento. Prensas de
laUniversidad de Zaragoza. 2014. For the consequences of the
rebellion cfr. G. Galasso. Napoli spagnola dopo Masaniello.
Npoles,Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane. 1972.
[50] Quoted in R. Ruotolo 2013 op. cit. p. 433. It appears in an
anonymous manuscript, Sollevazione di Masaniello (ms. XXII C6,
fol.251) preserved in the Societ Napoletana di Storia Patria.
[51] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Settima, p. 120.
[52] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Quarta, p. 177-178 "Fu
poscia nell'anno 1646, con l'occasione de' rumori populari in gran
parteruinata dal cannone del Castello. Finiti i tumulti, fu rifatta
nel modo nel quale si vede."
[53] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Quinta, p. 25 "ne'
tumulti populari dell'anno 1646 fu ruinato da' soldati per servirsi
de' legnami abrugiare."
[54] C. Celano 1692 op. cit. Giornata Terza p. 97 states that
"Questo si nobil palazzo fu ne' populari tumulti molto ridotto a
male,essendovisi fortificato il popolo".
[55] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Quarta, p. 172. "Questa
chiesa e casa, ne' tempi delle ultime motioni populari, si
mandarono gidal cannone del Castelnuovo con altri edificii di
questa strada: per lo che le povere figliuole furono trasportate
nella casa del Vernaglia,sita nella contrada della Pigna
Secca".
[56] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Terza, p. 89 "Ne' tumulti
poi popolari dell'anno 1646 rest questa chiesa tra le trincee regie
epopulari, fu saccheggiata e data al fuoco che la consum, e con
questa occasione si perderno molti quadri".
[57] Cfr. H.E. Wethey "The Spanish Viceroy, Luca Giordano and
Andrea Vaccaro". in The Burlington Magazine, Londres 1967, pp.
678-686.
[58] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Prima, p. 85.
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[59] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Terza, p. 229 reminded
that "Questo luogo cos nella chiesa come nell'habitationi ha patito
grandanno nel gi detto tremuoto, in modo che a rifarlo vi son
bastati 9 mila scudi."
[60] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Seconda, p. 151.
[61] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Terza, pp. 45-48 explains
the ruin's origin in a badly carried restoration of the lantern
after theeruption of 1631.
[62] The cupola was affected by structural damage and had to be
replaced in 1786 by other designed by Ignazio di Nardo. This was
theone copied in concrete in 1973 and is still in its place, cfr.
VV.AA. Napoli Sacra. Guida alle chiese della citt . 4 itinerario,
pp. 216-217(texto a cargo de Giampiero Lagnese).
[63] As is shown by the main altarpiece of La Vid monastery,
near Aranda de Duero (Burgos), the monastery of the augustinian
nuns"de Monterrey" in Salamanca or the monastery created for the
carmelite nuns in Pearanda de Bracamonte to cite the best
knownexamples.
[64] On this topic cfr. J. Gllego. El pintor de artesano a
artista. Universidad de Granada. 1976. For the local painters'
association cfr. F.Strazzullo. La corporazione dei pittori
napoletani. Napoli. G. D'Agostino. 1962
[65] B. de Dominici 1743, op. cit. vol. III, p. 3 "Procurava
Giuseppe di far riparo dal canto suo dipingendo delle Immagini per
vendere,ma gli facea ostacolo la moltiplicit de' Pittori
contemporanei, fra quali erano degli Artefici accreditati, cui
tutte l'opere venivanocommesse; e questi erano Fabrizio Santafede,
Girolamo Imparato, e Gio: Battistello Caracciolo, oltre di
Belisario, che gi aveva presobuo nome nell'operare a fresco, ed
andava anche uscendo in campo il Cavalier Massimo con la sua bella
maniera sullo stile di Guido."
[66] B. de Dominici 1743, op. cit. vol III, pp. 6-8 narrates the
jelousy of Corenzio and Ribera for the commissions given
toDomenichino, who "Tornato poscia il Zampieri in Napoli dopo
l'aggiustamento, cos per disgusti avuti da' suoi domestici, come
forse perveleno apprestatogli, sene mor".
[67] B. de Dominici 1743, op. cit. vol III, p. 6 "venne Guido,
ma per l'iniquit di Belisario, che favorito dal Ribera, fece
bastonare il di luiServitore, egli timoroso si fugg via: E lo
stesso accadde dappoi al suo Discepolo Francesco Gessi."
[68] G.B. Passeri. Vite de' Pittori, scultori ed architetti che
anno lavorato in Roma. Morti dal 161 al 1673. Roma 1772, p. 261
indicatesthat Cosimo Fanzago "Stabil dunque col mezzo di Ascenso
Funsaga suo figlio, che professava il mestiero di Tagliacantoni di
metterglipaura, ed incontrato un giorno il Finelli da questo
smargiasso si vide provocato con bravate, e con minaccie con
dirgli, che se non se nefosse ritornato presto a Roma, che laveria
passata in Napoli con poca sodisfazzione".
[69] They still lack a profound study and a catalogue raisonn,
the biographical data in, VV.AA. Civilt del Seicento a Napoli.
Npoles,Electa. 1984, pp. 143-146.
[70] B. de Dominici. Vite de' Pittori, scultori ed architetti
napoletani. Npoles, 1743, vol. III, pp. 82-87
[71] B. de Dominici 1743, op. cit. vol. III, p. 82 "Io non
saprei dire se la moltiplicit degli Artefici, o pure una certa
combinazione dicause ignote, che il volgo chiama Fortuna, sia
cagione, che taluni scarsamente siano adoperati nel loro mestiere,
tuttoch benissimoammaestrati, ed esercitati essi siano: onde
avvien, che costretti siano di procacciarsi il vitto miserabilmente
alla giornata."
[72] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Quarta, pp. 1-2 indicates
that to follow the itinerary in his book it is supposed "(come si
disse)che i signori forestieri habbiano a principiare queste
giornate di curiosit dai loro alloggiamenti, che stanno nell'ottina
della Carit".
[73] in 1619 the selling price of a workshop in the area was
around 1.610 ducats. That same year Ribera bought a house with a
gardenin the Strada dello Spirito Santo for 1.900 ducats. Ch.R.
Marshall 2010, op, cit. p. 125.
[74] Both were associating from 25 November 1630 till 4 may
1631, sharing the workshop that was in the houses owned by
CatarinaPerez in the Strada dello Spirito Santo. For this working
place Antonio Cimino paid 31 ducats a year. A. Delfino. "Documenti
inediti sualcuni pittori napoletani del Seicento" in Ricerche sul'
600 napoletano. Npoles, pp. 157-161, se trata del doc. n 27 (pp.
159-160). Thedocument is cited by Ch.R. Marshall 2010 op. cit. p.
125 n. 48 as proof that the high prices requested in the area
forced the artists tomake this kind of associations, but the facts
that Cimino was already working in the place and the short term
association may indicatethe existence of a contract for a work made
in collaboration.
[75] C. Celano 1692, op. cit. Giornata Sesta, p. 30 indicates
when he speaks of the Charterhouse church that "La volta della
chiesatutta posta a stucchi dorati sta dipinta dal cavalier
Giovanni Lanfranchi, e gli Apostoli che stan fra le finestre, dello
stesso Lanfranco,vanno in tanta stima che stanno portati in rame
dal bolino di Francesco Lovumont a spese di Giacomo Raillard."
[76] The engravings by Ribera in J. Brown. Jusepe de Ribera
grabador. Fundacin Caja de Pensiones. 1989.
[77] B. de Dominici 1743 op. cit. p. 433.
[78] In the Neptune and Nereids with still life in the Gallery
of Southern Australia (Adelaide). O. Ferrari-G. Scavizzi. Luca
Giordano.Nuove ricerche e inediti. Naples, Electa. 2003, n
A0125.
[79] In the Landscape with ruins of the Galleria di Palazzo
Arnone in Cosenza. VV.AA. Anteprima della Galleria Nazionale di
Cosenza.Milan, Silvana Editoriale. 2003, p. 90.
[80] That was compared with what Tintoretto did to secure the
commission of the canvases for the Scuola Grande di San Rocco
inVenice. S. Meloni Trkulja. "Nuove notizie su Luca Giordano (e sul
Volterrano)" in Paragone, 315, Florencia 1976, pp. 78-82.
[81] Relatione della vita di Luca Giordano pittore celebre fatta
sotto li 13 agosto 1681. Usually known as the Anonimo
Magliabecchiano,was published for the first time by G. Ceci
"Scrittori della Storia dellArte napoletana anteriori al De
Dominici" in Napoli Nobilissima, vol.VIII. Naples 1899, pp.
163-68.
[82] O. Ferrari. Una "vita" inedita di Luca Giordano. Napoli
Nobilissima, V. Naples 1966, pgs. 89-96 y 129-138.
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[83] B. de Dominici. Vita del cavaliere d. Luca Giordano pittore
napoletano. Npoles. 1729. The work is dedicated to one of
Giordano'ssons, Lorenzo "Reggente, e Presidente della Regia Camera
della Summaria" and it is the biography that de Dominici had
written to beincluded in the Le Vite de' Pittori, Scultori ed
Architetti Moderni de G.P. Bellori published in Rome in 1728.
[84] Counting the already cited and the one included by Joachim
von Sandrart in his Academia Nobilissimae artis pictoriae.
Nuremberg.1683, the one by P.A. Orlandi in his L'Abecedario
pittorico. Bolonia. 1704, the one writen by A.A. Palomino in El
Parnaso espaolpintoresco laureado. London. 1724 and the one
included by de Dominici in the third volume of his Vite, published
in 1743.
[85] It was placed in the Piazza degli Orefici y was known as
the Ospizio di San Lorenzo. G. Alliegro. Certosa di Padula. La
reggia delsilenzio. Salerno, Edizionti Matonti. 1987, p. 12.
[86] G.B. Vico. On the study methods of our time. Naples. 1709.
We cite according to the edition of Elio Gianturco, Cornell
University1990, p. 12.
DOI code: 10.14615/enbach34
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