Alessandro Allori | |
|---|---|
 Self-portrait by Allori,c. 1555 | |
| Born | (1535-05-31)31 May 1535 Florence, Italy |
| Died | 22 September 1607(1607-09-22) (aged 72) Florence, Italy |
| Known for | Painting |
| Movement | Mannerism |
Alessandro di Cristofano di Lorenzo del Bronzino Allori (Florence, 31 May 1535 – 22 September 1607) was an Italianpainter of the lateManneristFlorentine school.
After the death of his father in 1541, Allori was brought up and trained in art by the mannerist painterAgnolo Bronzino, a close friend of the family. Both Alessandro and his sonCristofano sometimes used the name "Bronzino" in adulthood.[1] Allori supplemented his training with a study trip to Rome, between 1554 and 1560, and with anatomical research which included the dissection of human corpses, provided by theHospital of Santa Maria Nuova.[2]
In the prime of his career, Allori headed one of the "two most important workshops in Florence in the second half of the 16th century" (the other was led bySanti di Tito).[3] He served as First Consul of theAccademia del Disegno in 1573, and was made head of theArazzeria Medicea, Florence's state-owned tapestry workshop, in 1581.[2] Allori also worked, under the guidance ofGiorgio Vasari, among the team of artists who decorated theStudiolo of Francesco I. He contributed four painted panels: aBanquet ofCleopatra, a landscape with figures diving for pearls, and portraits ofCosimo I de' Medici andEleanor of Toledo, the parents of Francesco I.[4] Between 1578 and 1582 he worked in the MediciVilla di Poggio a Caiano, expanding a fresco ofTribute to Caesar whichAndrea del Sarto had painted in the 1520s. Allori modified his style and copied figures to harmonize with the work of del Sarto, who was revered by the artists of Florence.[5] In the same way, Allori expandedFranciabigio's frescoTriumph of Cicero in the same hall with figures copied from his frescoes in theChiostro dello Scalzo, Florence.[6]
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S. J. Freedberg derides Allori as derivative, claiming he illustrates "the ideal ofManiera by which art (and style) are generated out of pre-existing art."[citation needed] The cold and polished appearance of his painted figures makes them resemble statues as much as living beings. The art historian Simona Lecchini Giovannoni is more positive, remarking that Allori gives life to these "grandiose, introverted figures" by surrounding them with realistic depictions of plants and flowers, household furniture, and textiles; the paintings "approach the spectator, not with dialogue and sentiment, but through the tangible evidence of objects and details".[3]
Among his collaborators wasGiovanni Maria Butteri and his main pupil wasGiovanni Bizzelli.Cristofano dell'Altissimo,Cesare Dandini,Aurelio Lomi, John Mosnier,Alessandro Pieroni,Giovanni Battista Vanni, and Monanni also were his pupils.[7] He was the father of the painterCristofano Allori (1577–1621).
In hisLives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, Vasari says that the relationships betweenJacopo Pontormo and his pupil Bronzino, and between Bronzino and Allori, resembled those between fathers and sons; he consequently describes the three as a kind of artistic dynasty, despite the lack of literal family ties.[1] In some ways, Allori is the last of the line of prominent Florentine painters, of generally undiluted Tuscan artistic heritage:Andrea del Sarto worked withFra Bartolomeo (as well asLeonardo da Vinci), Pontormo briefly worked under Andrea, and trained Bronzino, who trained Allori. Subsequent generations in the city would be strongly influenced by the tide ofBaroque styles pre-eminent in other parts of Italy.
In 2006 the BBC foreign correspondentSir Charles Wheeler returned an original Alessandro Allori painting to theGemäldegalerie, Berlin. He had been given it in Germany in 1952, but only recently realized its origin and that it must have been looted in the wake of World War II. The work is possibly a portrait of Eleonora (Dianora) di Toledo de' Medici, niece ofEleonora di Toledo, and measures 12 cm x 16 cm.[9]
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Media related toAlessandro Allori at Wikimedia Commons
