The paper investigates the historical and artistic ramifications of the Theatine saints in European sculptural art from 1600 to 1700. Though perhaps not complete as comparisons, it does reappraise Theatine iconog- raphy by examining the series of XVIII cent. Sculptures in the church of San Gaetano in Padua, hitherto unknown to artistic historiography. The works here refer to the school of Giovanni Bonazza (1654-1736), a pupil working in the Genoese Baroque tradition stemming from both Filippo Parodi (1630-1702) and the Belgian Giusto Le Court (1627-1679). Although no document certifying the commission Bonazza was by the provost of San Gaetano can be found in the archival documents, it is nevertheless possible that the artist was indeed responsible for the inter- nal and external sculptural apparatus of the church. Numerous figura- tive references of a certified nature support this assertion, not to mention some chronological notations relating to his work in Padua. By mapping out where he worked from North to South in modern Europe is in these pages, we can now demonstrate just how influential the Theatine saints were in the history of art. In particular, we can now also see how a certain taste took root between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, years in which Savonarola’s operations in the Paduan church gave the building site a new look. By borrowing some high-quality pieces located in vari- ous areas of the artistic geography of the Modern Age, we can now better understand how certain archetypes became widespread in the kingdoms of the North and South and thus calculate the significance not only of the figure of San Gaetano but also of the commissions he was offered to produce such sacred artistic objects, not to mention the role of the Con- fraternity in the various communities in which it operated.
L’indagine avviata sulla fortuna storico-artista dei santi teatini nell’ar- te scultorea europea dal 1600 al 1700 propone in questa sede - senza la presunzione di esaurirne le possibilità di confronto - una maggiore riva- lutazione dell’iconografia teatina prendendo in esame la serie di sculture del XVIII secolo della chiesa di San Gaetano a Padova, sconosciute alla storiografia artistica. Le opere sono qui riferite alla cerchia di Giovanni Bonazza (1654-1736), allievo della tradizione barocca genovese di Filip- po Parodi (1630-1702) e del belga Giusto Le Court (1627-1679). Pur non rintracciabile nelle carte d’archivio alcun documento che certifichi la committenza al Bonazza dal preposito di San Gaetano, è possibile riferi- re all’artista l’apparato scultoreo interno ed esterno della chiesa grazie ai numerosi riferimenti figurativi di indubbia concordanza, ai quali vengo- no in ausilio alcune notazioni cronologiche relative all’attività padovana. Percorrere un itinerario da Nord a Sud nell’Europa moderna è in queste pagine occorrenza prestigiosa per annoverare e rendere nota non soltanto la diffusione ch’ebbero le figure dei santi teatini nella storia dell’arte, ma in particolare prendere atto di una originale diffusione di gusto tra XVII e XVIII secolo, anni in cui nella chiesa padovana le operazioni del Savo- narola donavano alla fabbrica un volto nuovo. Prendere in prestito alcuni pezzi di elevata fattura e ubicati in diverse zone della geografia artistica dell’Età Moderna, serve oggi a comprendere quanto in tale occasione ri- scoprire gli archetipi diffusi nei regni del Nord e del Sud voglia dire cal- colare il peso della figura di San Gaetano nella committenza sacra artistica e del ruolo della Confraternita nelle diverse collettività.
Barocco di pietra: proposte per Giovanni Bonazza, putti, festoni e un nuovo studio sull’iconografia dei Santi Teatini / Stone baroque: ideas on Giovanni Bonazza, putti, festoni and a new study on the iconography of the Theatini
Martina Leone
2023-01-01
Abstract
The paper investigates the historical and artistic ramifications of the Theatine saints in European sculptural art from 1600 to 1700. Though perhaps not complete as comparisons, it does reappraise Theatine iconog- raphy by examining the series of XVIII cent. Sculptures in the church of San Gaetano in Padua, hitherto unknown to artistic historiography. The works here refer to the school of Giovanni Bonazza (1654-1736), a pupil working in the Genoese Baroque tradition stemming from both Filippo Parodi (1630-1702) and the Belgian Giusto Le Court (1627-1679). Although no document certifying the commission Bonazza was by the provost of San Gaetano can be found in the archival documents, it is nevertheless possible that the artist was indeed responsible for the inter- nal and external sculptural apparatus of the church. Numerous figura- tive references of a certified nature support this assertion, not to mention some chronological notations relating to his work in Padua. By mapping out where he worked from North to South in modern Europe is in these pages, we can now demonstrate just how influential the Theatine saints were in the history of art. In particular, we can now also see how a certain taste took root between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, years in which Savonarola’s operations in the Paduan church gave the building site a new look. By borrowing some high-quality pieces located in vari- ous areas of the artistic geography of the Modern Age, we can now better understand how certain archetypes became widespread in the kingdoms of the North and South and thus calculate the significance not only of the figure of San Gaetano but also of the commissions he was offered to produce such sacred artistic objects, not to mention the role of the Con- fraternity in the various communities in which it operated.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
