Ridolfo Ghirlandaio
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Ridolfo Ghirlandaio or Ghirlandajo (February 14, 1483–1560) was an Italian painter, the son of Domenico Ghirlandaio.
[edit] Biography
He was bonr in Florence.
Being less than eleven years old when his father died, was brought up by his uncle David. To this second-rate artist he owed less in the way of professional training than to Granacci, Piero di Cosimo and perhaps Cosimo Rosselli. It has been said that Ridolfo studied also under Fra Bartolomeo, but this is not clearly ascertained. He was certainly one of the earliest students of the famous cartoons of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.
His works between the dates 1504 and 1508 show a marked influence from Fra Bartolomeo and Raphael, with the latter of whom he was on terms of familiar friendship; hence he progressed in selection of form and in the modelling and relief of his figures. Raphael, on reaching Rome in 1508, wished Ridolfo to join him; but the Florentine painter was of a particularly home-keeping humour, and he neglected the opportunity. He soon rose to the head of the Florentine oil-painters of his time; and, like his father, accepted all sorts of commissions, of whatever kind.
He was prominent in the execution of vast scenic canvases for various public occasions, such as the wedding of Giuliano de' Medici, and the entry of Leo X into Florence in 1515. In his prime he was honest and conscientious as an artist; but from about 1527 he declined, having already accumulated a handsome property, more than sufficient for maintaining in affluence his large family of fifteen children, and his works became comparatively mannered and self-repeating. His sons traded in France and in Ferrara; he himself took a part in commercial affairs, and began paying some attention to mosaic work, but it seems that, after completing one mosaic, the Annunciation over the door of the Annunziata Basilica, patience failed him for continuing such minute labours. In his old age Ridolfo was greatly disabled by gout. He appears to have been of a kindly, easy-going character, much regarded by his friends and patrons.
The following are some of his leading works, the great majority of them being oil-pictures: Christ and the Manes on the road to Calvary, now in the Palazzo Antinori, Florence, an early example, with figures of half life-size. An Annunciation in the Abbey of Montoliveto near Florence, Leonardesque in style. In 1504, the Coronation of the Virgin, now in the Louvre. A Nativity, very carefully executed, now in the Hermitage, St Petersburg, and ascribed in the catalogue to Granacci. A predella, in the oratory of the Bigallo, Florence, five panels, representing the Nativity and other subjects, charmingly finished. In 1514, on the ceiling of the chapel of St Bernard in the Palazzo Pubblico, Florence, a fresco of the Trinity, with heads of the twelve apostles and other accessories, and the Annunciation; also the Assumption of the Virgin, who bestows her girdle on St Thomas, in the choir loft of Prato cathedral.
Towards the same date, a picture showing his highest skill, replete with expression, vigorous life, and firm accomplished pictorial method, now in the gallery of the Uffizi, St. Zenobius Resuscitating a Child, as well as the translation of the remains of the same Saint. The Virgin and various saints, at San Pietro Maggiore of Pistoia. In 1521, the Pietà, at S. Agostino, Colle di Val d'Elsa, life-sized. Towards 1526, the Assumption, now in the Berlin Museum, containing the painters, own portrait. An excellent portrait of Grand Duke Cosimo I de' Medici in youth. In 1543, a series of frescoes in the monastery of Santa Maria degli Angeli. In the National Gallery, London, is The Procession to Calvary. A great number of altar-pieces were executed by Ghirlandaio, with the assistance of his favorite pupil, currently named Michele di Ridolfo. Another of his pupils was Mariano da Pescia.
[edit] Sources
This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
