Matej Klemenčič VENETIAN EARLY MODERN SINGLE-LEAF PRINTS AFTER CONTEMPORARY SCULPTURE: QUESTIONS OF FORM AND FUNCTION Riassunto rappresentare un singolo pezzo di scultu- ra e potevano essere realizzate per scopi Durante l’epoca moderna, sia la scultura di marketing, celebrativi o propagandistici classica che quella moderna furono spesso o altro ancora. L’articolo discute alcune di tradotte a stampa. Queste stampe sono state queste stampe singole, incise per illustrare pubblicate in diverse occasioni e utilizzate le opere dello scultore veneziano Antonio per vari scopi, spesso in serie con illustrazio- Corradini, e pubblicate a Venezia, Vienna e ni di importanti opere d’arte, come ad esem- Roma. Le incisioni vengono discusse in vi- pio a Roma, o come cataloghi di intere col- sta della loro funzione e dello sviluppo della lezioni di sculture. D’altra parte, potevano carriera di Corradini. Keywords: single-leaf prints, sculpture, Venice, Baroque, Antonio Corradini n one of his early drawings, Giambat- sculptor, therefore, whom Tiepolo wanted tista Tiepolo portrayed his colleagues to distinguish from the others, most prob- Iand friends, gathered sometime be- ably all of them painters. It would be in- tween 1716 and 1718 in a so-called “ac- triguing to identify him with one of the cademia del nudo”, a drawing academy younger Venetian sculptors of the time organised by Collegio dei pittori on Fon- but, unfortunately, there is little evidence damenta Nuove in contrada Santa Maria that would help us deduce his name.1 Formosa, in Venice (Fig. 1). Recently, the Even though our anonymous sculptor two figures on the right were identified as was carefully singled out by his contem- Gregorio Lazzarini (standing) and Antonio porary Tiepolo, at the time still a young, Balestra (sitting, and acting as a corrector), but already a very promising painter, this while the others remain anonymous. Most- 1 For the drawing see, most recently, e. luccHese, ‘Nel ly they are immersed in the drawing of a segno della grazia. Antonio Balestra maestro di Anton standing naked male model on the left. Maria Zanetti di Girolamo e nella “Scuola del Nudo” di Giambattista Tiepolo’, in: Valori Tattili, 9 (2017), 166 The only exception is the artist sitting in ss. (with bibliography). The drawing, still in private the upper row who stands out not only as a collection, has been earlier in Haseltine collection little taller than the others but also because in London and later in Rasini collection in Milan; see A. Morassi, Disegni antichi dalla collezione Rasini in he is evidently not drawing, but instead Milano (Milano: Ulrico Hoepli, 1937), 47, cat. num. modelling a statue in clay with his hands: a LXVIII; A. Morassi, “A ‘Scuola del Nudo’ by Tiepolo”, in: Master Drawings, 9 (1971), 43-50. 103 Works_of_Art_FINAL.indd 103 15.11.2019 10:18:35 Works of Art on Parchment and Paper Fig.1: G. Tiepolo, Scuola del Nudo, 1716-1718. Private collection (Morassi, note 1 (1937), tab. LXVIII). essay will discuss one of many specific could be made for marketing, celebratory, connections between the arts of painting or propagandistic purposes, among others. and sculpture, and especially the presen- In the case of Venice, we will concentrate tation of sculpture in two dimensions. Re- on this last group, on the single-leaf prints garding this, there are several questions, of contemporary sculpture, on prints that for example, the importance of prepara- were not originally intended to become tory drawings for sculptors, drawings and part of a larger compendium. Since they paintings of sculpture, and presentation of were not bound into books, they were also sculpture in prints. Unfortunately, all these more vulnerable, and several prints are questions have rarely been discussed and therefore available today in a very small only a small number of drawings by Vene- number. Their form and function will be tian sculptors from the decades around discussed on the example of Antonio Cor- 1700 have been identified; the number of radini, arguably most famous of the 18th- known prints made after contemporary century Venetian sculptors before Antonio sculpture also remains considerably small. Canova. His unique position among con- During the early modern period, these temporary Venetian sculptors and his ex- prints were published on different occa- traordinary international career can shed a sions and used for various purposes, often special light on illustrations of his most es- in series as illustrations of important works sential achievements in marble, their func- of art, or as catalogues of whole collections tion, and contemporary response to them. of sculpture. Furthermore, they could also Relations between sculptors and paint- represent a single piece of sculpture and ers, reciprocal reception of their works, 104 Works_of_Art_FINAL.indd 104 15.11.2019 10:18:36 Matej Klemenčič: VENETIAN EARLY MODERN SINGLE-LEAF PRINTS... and possible influences have been at least and riccordi have been preserved in two partially studied, especially for the later 17th workshop collections – fondo di bottega – century and for some of the most impor- of Giovanni Maria Morlaiter and the Mari- tant artists of the Settecento: for Giusto Le nali family, and several other works have Court, Enrico Merengo, Antonio Zanchi, also been identified.5 However, the number and Johann Carl Loth, as well as for Sebas- of known drawings remains relatively small, tiano Ricci, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Piet- and the largest collection is again from the ro Baratta, Antonio Tarsia, Giovanni Maria workshop collection of the Marinali fami- Morlaiter, and Antonio Corradini, among ly.6 Nevertheless, we know that sculptors’ others.2 One of the most direct demonstra- drawings were already eagerly collected by tions of painters’ reception of sculptural some contemporaries. Marble statues and work is a drawing after a certain piece of drawings alike, works of Giusto Le Court, sculpture. In such cases, we can observe the foremost Venetian sculptor of the 17th how important for them was the choice of century, nicknamed by contemporaries as different points of view just to capture the “Bernini Adriatico”, have been an essential main characteristics of the statue under ob- part of the collection of Zaccaria Sagredo.7 servation. Classical statuary was evidently Unlike his Veronese drawings, they prob- one of the most obvious choices to study,3 ably remain unidentified in museums and and so sometimes was also modern sculp- private collections. Recent discoveries of ture. Among the latter, drawings by Giam- some of Le Court’s drawings and models for battista Tiepolo and his sons after busts the sculptural decoration of the Monument by Alessandro Vittoria are among the best- to Giovanni Pesaro show how important known examples.4 these works can be for understanding of his In contrast, studies of contemporary overall oeuvre.8 drawings of sculptors are of great impor- Sometimes, drawings were made of tance for understanding their working pro- sculptures in order to prepare prints. Es- cedures. For Venice (and Veneto), an impor- pecially with regard to classical sculpture, tant nucleus of sculptural bozzetti, modelli, it became increasingly necessary for ar- tists and connoisseurs to have easy access 2 See, for example, P. rossi, ‘Il ruolo della scultura nel to the most important items in churches, Seicento e la sua interrelazione con la pittura’, in: La private or public collections, in Rome and pittura nel Veneto. Il Seicento (ed. by M. Lucco, Mila- no: Electa, 2001 ), 2, 617-644; G. Pavanello, ‘Tiepolo e elsewhere. Even modern sculpture was la scultura: dalla copia all’invenzione’, in: Giambatti- sta Tiepolo nel terzo centenario della nascita (ed. L. 5 For Morlaiter esp. M. De vincenti, ‘Catalogo del “fondo Puppi, Padova: Poligrafo, 1998), 1, 165-170; P. rossi, di bottega” di Giovanni Maria Morlaiter’, in: Bollettino ‘Giambattista Tiepolo e la scultura del suo tempo’, in: dei Musei Civici Veneziani, 6 (2011), 12-77; for Marinali, Giambattista Tiepolo nel terzo centenario della nasci- for example, S. carMellini, Zwischen Steinbruch und Stu- ta (ed. L. Puppi, Padova: Poligrafo, 1998), 1, 171-176; M. dio: die Bildhauerwerkstatt von Orazio Marinali und De vincenti, ‘Per Giovanni Maria Morlaiter: uno scul- Giacomo Cassetti (1683-1754) (Marburg: Tectum, 2011). tore nella cerchia di Sebastiano Ricci’, in: Sebastiano Among several recent publications see, for example (for Ricci, 1659-1734 (ed. G. Pavanello, Verona: Scripta, Le Court), M. cleMente, ‘Giusto Le Court e i suoi “bellissi- 2012), 375-382. mi modelli di creta”: un’aggiunta al catalogo’, in: Giusto Le Court, due opere ritrovate (Firenze: Giovanni Pratesi, 3 See, for example, many drawings and paintings that 2015), 43-63. include the so-called Bust of Vitellio; an interesting, al- beit rather earlier example of actual drawing study with 6 See carMellini, note 5. three heads of Vitellio from different points of view by 7 C. MaZZa, I Sagredo: committenti e collezionisti d’arte Jacopo Palma il Giovane, see S. Mason, Palma il Giovane nella Venezia del Sei e Settecento (Venezia: IVSLA, 2004), 1548-1628. Disegni e dipinti, <Venice, Museo Correr> 105; S. Guerriero, “Un disegno di Giusto Le Court nella (Milano: Electa, 1990), 39, cat. 2b. collezione Certani”, in: Saggi e memorie di storia dell’ar- 4 See, for example, K. E. Maison, ‘The Tiepolo Drawings te, 27 (2003), 254. after the Portrait Bust of Palma Giovane by Alessandro 8 M. De Grassi, ‘Un modellino di Giusto Le Court per il Vittoria’, in: Master Drawings, 6 (1968), 392-294, 448- monumento Pesaro ai Frari’, in: Arte veneta, 53 (1998), 460; G. Knox, t. Martin, ‘Giambattista Tiepolo: A Series 124-127; Guerriero, note 7, 251-264; D. tulić, ‘Giusto Le of Chalk Drawings after Alessandro Vittoria’s Bust of Court e il Monumento Pesaro ai Frari: un bozzetto per i Giulio Contarini’, in: Master Drawings, 25 (1987), 158- “quattro bellissimi Affricani”’, in: Arte veneta, 69 (2012), 163, 189-200.