Andrea del Sarto paintings. Lives of the most famous painters, sculptors and architects

Andrea del Sarto (Italian Andrea del Sarto), real name Andrea d'Agnolo di Francesco di Luca di Paolo del Migliore Vannucchi (Italian Andrea d "Agnolo di Francesco di Luca di Paolo del Migliore Vannucchi; 1486/87, Florence - 21 January 1531, Florence) - Italian painter of the Florentine school, student of Piero di Cosimo.

Born in 1486 in Florence. In his youth, his development as an artist was influenced by Fra Bartolomeo and Leonardo da Vinci, and later by Michelangelo. He was friends with Raphael, Titian, Franciabigio. He worked in Florence, in 1518-1519 he worked in France at the invitation of King Francis I. He returned to Florence in 1519.

Andrea married Lucrezia del Fede, the widow of a hatter named Carlo, on December 26, 1512. Lucrezia appears in many of his paintings, often as the Madonna. However, Vasari describes her as "unfaithful, jealous, and quarrelsome towards her students." It is also characterized in the poem “Andrea del Sarto” by Robert Browning. Andrea died in Florence at the age of 43 during a plague epidemic in 1530 or 1531. He was buried without special ceremony in the Servites Church. In the Biography, Vasari claimed that Andrea received no care from his wife during his terminal illness. However, at that time it was well known that the plague was very contagious, so there is an assumption that Lucretia was simply afraid of contracting a dangerous and often fatal disease. If this is true, her precaution was justified, since she outlived her husband by 40 years.

Self-portrait of the painter Andrea del Sarto


Portrait of Lucrezia de Baccio del Fede

Annunciazione (Palazzo Pitti)

Madonna Santo-con ed Angelo Museo del Prado

Disputa sulla Trinità (Palazzo Pitti)

Madonna and Child with little John the Baptist. 1505-1510

Madonna and Child. National Art Museum Azerbaijan

Del Sarto's most ambitious monument, in terms of the amount of time he devoted to it, is the grisaille series in the Chiostro dello Scalzo

San Giovanni Battista (Palazzo Pitti)

Assumption of the Virgin (Poppy Altarpiece)

Il sacrificio di Isacco, Dresda, Gemäldegalerie>

Madonna and Child with St Elisabeth, the Infant St John, and Two Angels.1515-16.Musée du Louvre, Paris

Same

Portrait of a man

Madonna with the Harpies. Galleria degli Uffizi

Andrea del Sarto - Pietà with Saints

Portrait of a Man, Metropolitan Museum of Art

Punishment of the Gamblers.Santissima Annunziata, Florence

Journey of the Magi.1511.Santissima Annunziata, Florence

Dama col "Petrarchino"

Miraculous Cure by Relics of Filippo Benizzi.1510.Fresco.Santissima Annunziata, Florence

Refectory

Birth of the Virgin.1514.Fresco, Santissima Annunziata, Florence

Charity1518Oil on canvas (transferred), Musée du Louvre, Paris

Portrait of a Woman with a Basket of Spindles.Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

Portrait of Baccio Bandinelli.Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

San Salvi Museum, Andrea Del Sarto in painting, Florence, Italy

Christ the Redeemer. Santissima Annunziata, Florence

Andrea Del Sarto Museum

Last Supper

Last Supper (fresco detail)

Tobias and the Angel with St Leonard and Donor

Artist's House

Sources:
History of Art, vol. 5: Italy. - Montpellier, 1872.
Illustrations:

LIFE OF ANDREA DEL SARTO

the most excellent Florentine painter

(Andrea d'Agnolo, nicknamed Andrea del Sarto (1486-1530), was a Florentine painter, one of the greatest masters of the High Renaissance. The son of the tailor Agnolo di Francesco (Sarto - Italian for “tailor”) was an apprentice in a jeweler’s workshop, and then studied Piero di Cosimo, joined the guild of doctors and pharmacists in 1508, in the same year he opened a bottega together with Franciabigio and received an order for frescoes from the Servite monastery.In 1511, he may have been in Rome, where, apparently , became acquainted with the work of Raphael. In 1513, probably a trip to Venice (acquaintance with the work of Bellini, Giorgione, young Titian). In 1514, perhaps, he visited Rome a second time (where the ceiling had just been completed Sistine Chapel). In 1515, the first mention of frescoes in the Scalzi monastery, in the same year participation in the decoration of Florence on the occasion of the arrival of Pope Leo X. Marriage to Lucrezia del Fede (in 1517 or 1518). From May 1518 to the beginning of 1519 - in France (at the invitation of King Francis I). In 1521 he worked at the Villa Medici in Poggio a Caiano. In 1523 he fled from the plague to the Mugello River valley. In 1525 he received an order for paintings in the Palace of the Signoria, in 1527 he made a will, in 1529-1530. painted the Palazzo del Podestà (during the siege of Florence). Died of the plague on September 28 or 29, 1530.

Major works: five frescoes (Life of St. Philip Benizzi) in the forecourt of the Servite Church of Sayatissima Annunziata in Florence (1509-1510); “Adoration of the Magi” (1511, ibid.); “The Nativity of Our Lady” (1514, ibid.); "Head of Christ" (c. 1515, Florence, now in the church of San Salvi); “Madonna with a Sack” (1525, ibid.). Monochrome paintings in the courtyard of the community dello Scalzo in Florence: “The Life of John the Baptist”, “Faith, Hope, Love, Justice” (1512-1526). Frescoes in the Church of San Salvi in ​​Florence: five medallions with saints (1515, possibly in collaboration with Franciabigio) and the Last Supper (c. 1526). Unfinished fresco "Tribute to Caesar" in Poggio a Caiano (1521, completed by Allori in 1570). “The Annunciation” (c. 1514, Florence, Pitti Gallery); "St. family" (c. 1515, Paris, Loupres); “Madonna with the Harpies” (1517, Florence, Uffizi); “Dispute about the Trinity” (1517, Florence, Nitti Gallery); “Love” (1518, Paris, Louvre); “The Dream of Pharaoh” (1517, Florence, Pitti Gallery); “The Holy Family” (1519, Leningrad, Hermitage); “Entombment” (1524, ibid.); “John the Baptist” (c. 1525, ibid.); "St. Jacob" (c. 1525, Florence, Uffizi); “Madonna della Scala” (c. 1525, Madrid, Prado); “Lamentation” (c. 1525, Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum); “Sacrifice of Isaac” (1526, Dresden, gallery); “Entombment” (1526, ibid.); “Assumption” (1526, Florence, Pitti Gallery); “Madonna with Six Saints” (c. 1528, ibid.); "St. family" (c. 1528, ibid.); “Assumption” (c. 1530, ibid.); "St. family" (c. 1528, Berlin, museum); “Four Saints” (1528, Florence, Uffizi); “Two Angels” (1528, ibid.); “Madonna” (1528-1530, London, Wallace collection); "Madonna Borgherini" (New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art). Portraits of: the sculptor (possibly J. Sansovino, 1524, London, National Gallery); a young girl (Uffizi) and a self-portrait (ibid.); both - the last years of creativity; copy of Raphael's portrait of Pope Leo X in the Naples National Pinacoteca. Drawings in the Louvre, Uffizi and British Museum)

So, after the biographies of many artists, some distinguished by their coloring, some by their drawing, and some by their invention, we came to Andrea del Sarto, a master of the most excellent 1, for in him alone nature and art showed what painting is capable of when it is in equal To the extent possible, he uses color, design, and invention. Indeed, if Andrea had had a somewhat more courageous and decisive character, in accordance with his inherent talent for this art and the deepest understanding of it, he, without any doubt, would have had no equal in it. But some timidity of spirit and some kind of self-doubt and gullibility of his nature did not give the opportunity to manifest in him that living burning, that impulse, which, in combination with his other abilities, would have made him a truly divine painter; after all, it was precisely for this reason that he lacked that brilliance, that scope and that abundance of different manners that we saw in many other painters. Nevertheless, his figures, despite some simplicity and rigidity, are perfectly composed, impeccable and, ultimately, perfect. The facial expressions of babies and women are natural and charming, and those of young men and old people are surprisingly lively and spontaneous, the folds are extremely good, and the naked bodies are perfectly defined, and although his drawing is rustic, his coloristic solutions are extremely refined and truly divine.

Andrea was born in Florence in 1478 from a father who had been engaged in tailoring all his life, which is why everyone always called him the son of a tailor. When he reached the age of seven, he was primary school, where he learned to read and write, was transferred to a goldsmith's workshop, in which, by natural inclination, he was always much more willing to paint than to wield tools for processing silver and gold. That is why Gian Barile 2, a Florentine painter, but uncouth and simple-minded, seeing that the boy painted so well, took him in and, forcing him to give up jewelry, introduced him to the art of painting, which Andrea began to practice with the greatest pleasure, realizing that nature created him for this activity. That is why, in the shortest possible time, he began to create things in color that both Gian Barile and other artists of this city were delighted with.

However, when, after three years, Andrea, having already acquired excellent skills in his work, continued to work hard, Barile came to the conclusion that the boy, if only he was as persistent, would be exceptionally successful, and, having talked about him with Piero di Cosimo 3 , revered at that time as one of the best painters in all of Florence, he introduced him to Andrea, who, passionately wanting to learn, did not stop working and studying his craft. The nature that gave birth to him as a painter was so strong in him that, when handling paints, he did it with such ease, as if he had been painting for fifty years. For this, Piero took a liking to him greatest love and he rejoiced from the bottom of his heart when he heard that Andrea, taking advantage of every moment of his free time and especially on holidays, spent whole days drawing with other young men in the Papal Hall, where the cardboard of Michelangelo and the cardboard of Leonardo da Vinci 4 were located, and that he , despite his young age, surpassed all other draftsmen, both local and visitors, who endlessly crowded there. Of these, by his nature and by his manner of speaking, he liked the painter Franciabigio the most, who equally liked the nature of Andrea del Sarto.

And so, when they became friends on this basis, Andrea once told France that he could no longer tolerate the eccentricities of the completely decrepit Pierrot and that therefore he wanted to start a separate workshop for himself. Francia, who was forced to do the same, since his teacher Mariotto Albertinelli had already given up painting by that time, hearing the decision of his friend Andrea, said that he also needed a workshop and that it would be beneficial for them to live together 5. And so, having occupied a room in Piazza del Grano, they painted many things together, including the curtains with which the images of the high altar in the Servite Church were curtained, and which were commissioned by them from the church warden, Franci’s closest relative. On these canvases they wrote: on the one facing the choir, the Annunciation, and on the other, in front, the Descent from the Cross, similar to the one depicted on the image by Filippo and Pietro Perugino that was there.

In Florence, at the end of the Via Larga, even higher than the houses of the magnificent Ottaviano dei Medici and just opposite the garden of San Marco, members of a community called dello Scalzo and whose patron was St. John the Baptist. At that time, this community began to be rebuilt with the participation of many Florentine artists, who first of all built, among other buildings, a courtyard surrounded by a gallery with low columns. And so some of the members of the community saw that Andrea would soon take a place among the best painters, but, possessing wealth more spiritual than monetary, they nevertheless decided to commission him to paint twelve single-color frescoes throughout the entire gallery of the courtyard depicting twelve stories from the life of St. John the Baptist 7. Having begun this work, Andrea depicted Christ in the first fresco receiving baptism from St. John, writing it with great skill and in an excellent manner, which won him confidence, honor and fame so much that many began to turn to him with orders, believing that in time he would, without a doubt, achieve with honor for himself what was promised such an out of the ordinary beginning of his activity.

Among other things he then executed in this first manner, he painted a picture that is now in the house of Filippo Spini, 8 where it is held in great esteem in memory of such a great artist. And a little later, he was commissioned for one of the chapels of the Church of San Gallo, the monastery of the hermit brothers of the Observant Augustinian Order, outside the gates of San Gallo, an image on wood depicting Christ 9, who in the guise of a gardener appears in the garden to Mary Magdalene. This thing, in its coloring, thanks to its special softness and unity, is all so tender and so well written that it served as the reason for the fact that soon after it he painted two more in the same church, which will be discussed below 10. All three boards are now in the churches of San Jacopo tra and Fossi, on the corner of Alberti. After the completion of these works, Andrea and Francia moved from Piazza del Grano to new premises on Sapienza's land, near the monastery of Nunziata. And so it happened that Andrea and Jacopo Sansovino 11, at that time still a young man, studying sculpture there under the guidance of his teacher Andrea Contucci, became such strong and close friends that they did not part with each other day or night. Their conversations were mostly devoted to the difficulties of art, and it is not surprising that both of them subsequently differed in it, and now we are talking about Andrea, and in its place it will be said about Jacopo.

At that very time, in the Servite monastery we mentioned, standing behind a candle box was a certain monk from the sacristy, named Fra Mariano of Canto alle Macine, who, hearing that there was no person who did not praise Andrea for his amazing pictorial successes, decided at a reasonable price achieve the fulfillment of the plan embedded in it. And so, tempting Andrea (a gentle and kind man) on the basis of his ambition, he began, under the guise of loving care for him, to offer him his help in a matter that promised him honor and benefit and such glory that he would never again experience need.

Already many years ago, in the first courtyard of this monastery, Alesso Baldovinetti painted on the wall adjacent to Nunziata the Nativity of Christ, which was mentioned above, and on the opposite side, in the same courtyard, Cosimo Rosselli began a story depicting how St. Philip, the founder of the Servite order, takes monastic vows 12. This story was not completed by Cosimo, who died while working. So this same monk, inflamed with the desire to bring this matter to the end, decided that Andrea and Francia, who had managed to turn from friends into rivals in art, began to compete with each other and that each of them completed part of the work, thanks to which he not only would be the best way served, but he would have to pay less, and the artists would have to work more. And so, without hiding his intentions from Andrea, he persuaded him to take on this commission, proving to him that this work, carried out in such a crowded and visited place, would make him famous not only among the Florentines, but also among visitors, and that he had nothing to do and think about setting the price himself, and not only should he not force himself to ask, but also that he himself would have to achieve this, if he does not agree, then there is Francia, who has already offered his services, providing the customer set the price.

All these arguments greatly contributed to Andrea's decision to take on this burden, since he was a man in highest degree weak-willed, but the last argument concerning Franchi forced him to finally decide and enter into a written agreement for the entire work as a whole without the participation of anyone else. Having entangled him in this way and giving him money, the monk’s first duty was to demand that Andrea continue the life of St. Philip, receiving only ten ducats for each story, and also added that he pays this money from himself and does it more for the benefit and convenience of Andrea than for the needs and benefit of the monastery itself.

And so, continuing this work with the greatest zeal, Andrea, who was more concerned about honor than profit, in the shortest possible time completely completed and showed the first three stories. Namely: the first one, where St. Philip, after his tonsure, dresses a naked man, and the second, where he denounces the players who blasphemously reviled the Lord and ridiculed St. Philip, mocking his instructions, and lightning falling from the sky strikes the tree in the shade of which they were sitting, killing two of them and throwing the rest into indescribable confusion, some of whom, stunned, clutching their heads, prostrate, while others scream they run away in horror, and at the same time a certain woman, maddened by thunder and fear, runs so naturally that she seems truly alive, and the horse, frightened by the roar and general confusion and broken free from its leash, convinces us with its jumps and terrible movements that , how everything sudden and unexpected can plunge everyone into horror Living being; in a word, it is clear in everything how much Andrea understood the whole variety of events taking place, guided by considerations that are certainly correct and necessary for every painter. Finally, in the third story he depicted St. Philip expelling evil spirits from a woman possessed by them, with all the peculiarities that can be imagined in an action of this kind. It is not surprising that all three stories brought the artist the greatest honor and fame 13.

Encouraged by this success, he wrote two more stories in the same courtyard. On one of the walls we see the deceased St. Philip, surrounded by weeping brethren and immediately a dead baby, resurrected by touching the bed on which St. Philip, and we see the baby first dead, and then resurrected and alive, with the most excellent observance of due naturalness and truthfulness. In the last story, from the same side, he depicted monks laying the vestments of the deceased saint. Philip on the heads of several youths. In this fresco he placed a portrait of the sculptor Andrea della Robbia in the guise of an old man in red clothes, bending over with a staff in his hand, as well as a portrait of his son Luca. And on that fresco where the death of St. Philip, he painted a portrait of Andrea's other son, Girolamo, a sculptor and his closest friend, who recently died in Florence.

With this, he completed one side of the courtyard, realizing that his pay was too little and his honor not too much, and decided to abandon the rest, no matter how much the monk complained about him; Remembering, however, the favor Andrea had shown him, he, for his part, decided to meet him halfway: having secured from him a promise to write two more stories at his own discretion, he increased his price, which was agreed upon.

Thanks to these works, Andrea achieved even greater fame and they began to order him many paintings and other major works, including the general of the monastic order of Vallombrosa, who ordered him the Last Supper under one of the arches of the refectory of the monastery of San Salvi, which is in Porta alla Croce. On the same vault he painted four figures of St. in four tondos. Benedict, St. John Gualbert, St. Salvi, bishop, and St. Bernard degli Uberti of Florence, a monk of the same order and a cardinal, and in the middle of the vault he painted a tondo depicting the triune face of St. Trinity 14. This thing, like a fresco, was perfectly executed, after which Andrea was recognized for what he really was as a painter. So, by order of Baccio d'Agnolo, he was commissioned to have a fresco depicting the Annunciation 15 in a nook between Orsanmichele and Mercato Nuovo. It was painted, as can be seen to this day, in a very petty manner, for which Andrea did not deserve special praise, perhaps because , which he always did well, worked at ease, without forcing his nature, but in this work he, it is believed, decided to push himself and overdid it.

Among the many paintings that he subsequently painted for Florence and the description of which would take up too much space, I, speaking only of the most famous, will name the one that is now in the collection of Baccio Barbadori and which depicts the Virgin Mary in full length with a baby in her arms , in the presence of St. Anna and St. Joseph, executed in a beautiful manner and highly valued by Baccio himself. He painted another, no less praised, now in the possession of Lorenzo di Domenico Borghini, and another with the image of the Madonna for Leonardo del Giocondo, currently in the possession of his son Piero. For Carlo Ginori he wrote two small paintings, subsequently purchased by the magnificent Ottaviano de' Medici, one of which is now in his wonderful Villa di Campi, and the other is kept in his collection along with many other paintings of the most outstanding modern masters Signor Bernardetto, a worthy son of such a father, who not only reveres and appreciates the creations of famous artists, but is also a truly magnificent and generous signore in all his actions 16.

Meanwhile, the Servite monk ordered one of the stories in the aforementioned courtyard of Franciabigio 17, and before he had time to fence himself off, Andrea sensed evil. Since he feared that he was a more experienced and dexterous master in handling paints for frescoes, he began, as if in a race with him, to prepare cardboards for both stories, intending to transfer them to the wall between the door of the side facade of San Bastiano and the door leading from the courtyard to Nunziata itself. Having finished the cardboards, he began to paint the frescoes.

On the first of them, he painted the Nativity of the Virgin Mary 18, creating a composition of perfectly proportioned figures, freely placed in a room where the women who visited the woman in labor as her friends and relatives surrounded her, dressed in the attire accepted at that time. Other, less noble women, busy around the hearth, wash the newborn girl, while still others are busy with diapers and similar preparations. Among other figures, there is a boy warming himself by the fire, just as alive, as well as an old man resting on a wide bed and depicted with great verisimilitude. Such are the women who bring food to the reclining mother with their correctly observed and extremely natural movements. And all these figures, including the puttas, who, soaring in the air, scatter flowers, are carefully thought out regarding their appearance, clothing and everything else, and in color they are painted so softly that their body seems to be alive, and even everything else seems not written, but real.

In another fresco, Andrea depicted the three wise men 19 who, guided by a guiding star, came from the East to worship the infant Christ. And he depicted them already dismounted from their horses and as if already approaching their destination, and this is confirmed by the fact that between them and the Nativity of Christ, which we immediately see written by the hand of Alesso Baldovinetti, there remains a distance occupied only by the openings of two doors. In this story, Andrea depicted the three wise men, accompanied by a whole retinue, along with luggage, equipment and all sorts of people, among which in one corner he placed portraits of three men dressed in Florentine style. One of them - Jacopo Sansovino - is all in sight and looking at the viewer, the other, leaning on him, points at something with his hand depicted in foreshortening - this is Andrea himself, the author of the work, and behind Jacopo the head of the third of them is half visible - musician Ayolla 20. Among other things, the fresco also shows children climbing the fences to see all the splendor, as well as the strange animals that the wise men brought with them. In terms of quality, this story is in no way inferior to the previous one, moreover, in both cases he surpassed not only Francia, who also completed his story, but also himself.

Simultaneously with these frescoes, he painted for the Abbey of San Godenzo, the estate of the same monks, an altarpiece on wood, which was considered an excellent work, and for the monks of San Gallo, also on wood, the Annunciation, in which we see a very pleasing integrity of color to the eye, as well as the gentle chiaroscuro and perfect beauty of the expressive heads of the angels accompanying Gabriel. The Predella under this image was painted by Jacopo da Pontormo, who was at that time still a student of Andrea and who, already from a young age, showed an example of those beautiful works that he later wrote with his own hand in Florence, but even before he became, so to speak, a different person, what will be discussed in his biography 21.

After this, Andrea painted for Zanobi Girolami a picture with small figures, which depicted the story of Joseph, son of Jacob, and which he finished with the most careful attention, for which it was recognized as a most magnificent painting. And a little later it is for the members of the community of Santa Marna della Neve, which is behind convent Sant Ambrogio began to paint a small image on wood with three figures of the Madonna, St. John the Baptist and St. Ambrose, - which, after completion, was eventually installed on the altar of the said community 22.

Meanwhile, during this time Andrea, thanks to his talent, became closely acquainted with Giovanni Gaddi, later a chamber cleric, for whom, as a constant connoisseur of the arts of drawing, Jacopo Sansovino was constantly working at that time. He liked Andrea's manner, and he ordered him for himself a painting with the most beautiful Mother of God, and since Andrea made models and all sorts of other ingenious devices for painting it, it was considered the best of all the works he had ever written. After this, he painted another Virgin for the haberdashery merchant Giovanni di Paolo, which delighted everyone who saw her, for indeed she was extremely beautiful, and for Andrea Santini another picture with the Madonna, Christ, St. John and St. Joseph, executed with such skill that in Florence it was always considered a painting worthy of the greatest praise 23.

All these works brought him such fame in his hometown that among many painters of that time, both young and old, he was ranked among the most outstanding of all who mastered paints and brushes. Therefore, he acquired not only honor, but also the opportunity (although he actually took very little money for his labors) to partially provide help and support to his loved ones, and also to protect himself from the hardships and worries that bother anyone who lives in need. However, having fallen in love with a young woman, recently widowed, and having married her, he was forced to work tirelessly for the rest of his life and work much more than before. 24 And so, in addition to all the worries and troubles that are usually associated with this kind of obligations, he in addition took upon himself everything that a person experiences, tormented either by jealousy or by something else, today for one reason, and tomorrow for another.

However, it is time to return to his works, which are as numerous as they are exceptional in quality. After all that was mentioned above, for a certain Minor monk from the monastery of Santa Croce, who was at that time abbot of the convent of San Francesco, in Via Pentolini, and a great lover of painting, he painted the Virgin Mary on a tree for the church of this monastery. standing at full height on an octagonal pedestal, at the corners of which are depicted seated harpies, as if worshiping the Madonna 25. And with one hand she supports her son, who in a most beautiful turn embraces her with indescribable tenderness, and with the other - a closed book and looks at two naked puttas , helping her to carry her burden and at the same time framing her figure. To her right is a beautifully painted St. Francis; in his face one can feel the kindness and humility that were indeed characteristic of this holy man. The feet and clothes are also magnificent, for Andrea, with the help of the richest play of folds and especially gentle transitions, always knew how to outline the figure in such a way that the naked body was visible under them. On the left - St. John the Evangelist, depicted in the most beautiful manner as a young man writing the Gospel. In addition, we see in this thing clouds of transparent clouds, as if sweeping in front of the walls and figures that shine through them. It is not without reason that this painting is considered exceptional and extremely beautiful among all the works created by Andrea. He also painted a Madonna for the woodworker of Nice, which was considered no less beautiful than his other works 26.

Therefore, when the guild of merchants decided that in the morning procession on St. John's Day, instead of the cloth banners and candles that each city and town carries past the duke and chief magistrates as a sign of their citizenship, special wooden triumphal chariots like the ancient Roman ones should be prepared, several of the ten chariots were painted Andrea painted with chiaroscuro and oils, for which he received all sorts of praise. Following them, it was ordered to make another chariot every year until each city or region received its own, which would be extremely magnificent and solemn; all this, however, was abolished in 1527 27.

So, while Andrea was decorating his hometown with these and other works, and his fame was increasing every day, the members of the community of dello Scalzo passed a decision according to which Andrea was to complete the painting of their courtyard, which he had already begun by painting in it is the story of the Baptism of Christ 28. And so, starting again with this work with even greater desire, he wrote two stories there, and to decorate the doors leading to the community premises - the most beautiful figures of Love and Justice. In one of these stories he depicted St. preaching to a crowd. John in a bold turn, with a body scorched by the heat and entirely in keeping with his lifestyle, and with a deeply spiritual and concentrated expression on his face. No less amazing is the variety and liveliness of the listeners, some of whom are delighted and deeply shocked by the new word and such an unusual and hitherto unheard of teaching. However, Andrei's talent was much more clearly manifested in the way he painted John baptizing a countless crowd in the river, among whom some take off their clothes, others accept baptism, and others, already undressed, await their turn. In all he showed a living feeling, and in the movements of those who are in a hurry to be cleansed of sin, passionate impatience, not to mention the fact that all the figures are so well worked out in chiaroscuro that they together seem to be living history, carved from marble, but to the highest degree plausible. It is impossible to keep silent about the fact that while Andrea was working on these and other works, some prints appeared, engraved on copper by Albert Durer, and that he used them and borrowed individual figures, subordinating them to his own style. This circumstance gave rise to some to argue that, of course, it is not bad to know how to use someone else’s property, but that Andrea, therefore, did not have enough invention.

By that time, Baccio Bandinelli, who was then highly regarded as a draftsman, decided to learn to paint in oils and, knowing that in all of Florence no one knew how to do this better than Andrea, ordered him to paint his portrait, which turned out very similar to him at that time , which is not difficult to be convinced of even now 29. Looking at how Andrea painted this thing, as well as others, he saw how they used color, but later, either frightened by difficulties, or out of carelessness, he stopped painting, turning to sculpture, which turned out to be more convenient for him.

For Alessandro Corsini, Andrea painted a picture with many puttas surrounding the Madonna, who sits on the ground with a child in her arms, a picture he executed with great skill and in a very pleasant coloring, and for a merchant who kept a shop in Rome and was his great friend, he painted a very beautiful head. Likewise, the Florentine Giovanbattista Puccini, who extremely liked Andrea’s style, ordered him a painting with the image of the Mother of God, intending to send it to France, however, since the artist was very successful with it, he kept it and never sent it anywhere. However, since he continued to have commercial affairs in France and since he was entrusted with sending there the most outstanding paintings, he commissioned Andrea of ​​the Dead Christ, surrounded by angels supporting him, who sadly and pitifully contemplate their Creator, who took such torment for himself. human sins. When this thing was finished, everyone liked it so much that Andrea, at the request of many, ordered an engraving from it from Agostino Veneziano in Rome, but since the engraving turned out to be unsuccessful, from then on he did not want to send any of his things to print. As for the painting itself, it was liked in France, where it was sent, no less than in Florence, and so much so that the king, burning with an even greater desire to possess Andrea’s works, ordered him to paint several more, which was the reason why why Andrea, yielding to the insistence of his friends, decided to soon go to France 30.

Then - and this was in 1515 - the Florentines, having learned that Pope Leo X was going to show mercy to their native city with his visit, started to receive it with the greatest celebrations and magnificent and magnificent decoration 31 with so many arches, facades, temples, colossi and other sculptures and decorations, that nothing more magnificent, rich and beautiful had ever been built, for at that time this city, as never before, abounded in beautiful and sublime talents that flourished in it. At the entrance to the gate of San Pier Gattolini, Jacopo di Sandro, with the participation of Baccio da Montelupo, erected an arch completely covered with stories. The other, in front of the Church of San Felice in Piazza, was built by Giuliano del Tasso, who also placed several statues and a statue of Romulus in front of the Church of Santa Trinita and Trajan's Column on the Mercato Nuovo. Antonio, brother of Giuliano da Sangallo, built an octagonal temple in Piazza della Signoria, and Baccio Bandinelli made a giant for the loggia. Between the abbey and the palace of the Podestà, an arch was erected by Granaccio and Aristotile da Sangallo, and on the Canto dei Bischeri Rosso built another arch with a variety of figures magnificently arranged on it. However, the highest praise was given to the façade of Santa Maria del Fiore, made of wood and decorated with various stories, which were executed in chiaroscuro by our Andrea with such perfection that it was difficult to even dream of anything better. And since, moreover, the architecture of this structure, as well as some of the bas-relief stories and many of the round sculptures on it, belonged to Jacopo Sansovino, the pope admitted that it could not have been more beautiful even if it had been sculpted in marble. Nevertheless, in general it was intended Lorenzo Medici, the father of this pope, back in his time. The same Jacopo Sansovino erected an equestrian statue in the Piazza Santa Maria Novella, similar to the one in Rome, and considered excellent. Countless decorations were also brought into the Papal Hall in Via della Scala, and half of this street was filled the most beautiful stories, executed by many artists, for the most part, however, from the drawings of Baccio Bandinelli. And so, when Leo entered Florence on the third of September of the same year, this decoration was recognized as hitherto unprecedented, both in its scope and in its beauty.

Let us return, however, to Andrea, who, after being asked to paint another picture for the King of France, in the shortest possible time completed a most beautiful Madonna, which he immediately sent and sold four times to the merchants. more expensive than that, for what they bought it 32.

Just at this time, Francesco Borgherini ordered Baccio d'Agnolo 33 to furnish one room, consisting of beautiful panels, chests, benches and a carved walnut bed. And so that the paintings on this furniture would not be inferior high quality remaining works, he entrusted Andrea with part of the stories with small figures from the life of Joseph, son of Jacob, in competition with Granaccio and Jacopo da Pontormo, by whom the rest had already been written and, moreover, excellently 34. And so Andrea made all his efforts to complete this work conscientiously and in the shortest possible time and at the same time achieve greater perfection in comparison with the stories written by his predecessors. He succeeded in this perfectly, since he showed in depicting the whole variety of events taking place in these stories how much he mastered the art of painting. During the siege of Florence, Giovanbattista della Palla, seduced by the quality of these stories, wanted to tear them out of the grooves in which they were embedded and send them to the king of France. However, they were so firmly fixed that removing them would have damaged all the furniture, and therefore they remained in their places, as well as the painting of the Mother of God, which is considered a rare work 35.

After this, Andrea painted the head of Christ, 36 which is still kept by the Servite monks on the altar of the Nunziata and which is so beautiful that I, for my part, do not know whether the human mind can imagine a more beautiful image of the head of Christ.

In the monastery, outside the gates of San Gallo, in the chapels of the church, in addition to the two altar images by Andrea, there were also many others, incomparably weaker. Therefore, when they had to order another image, the monks agreed with the owner of the chapel that it should be ordered by Andrea, who, immediately starting work, depicted on it four full-length figures arguing about St. Trinity 37, namely: St. Augustine in episcopal vestments, who with a truly African passion and an indomitable impulse with his whole body turned to St. Peter the Martyr, who holds an open book with an expression on his face and movements filled with unyielding and stunning strength, and whose head and figure have not without reason received high praise. Next to him is St. Francis, holding a book with one hand and putting the other to his chest, seems to be expressing with his lips some kind of inner burning that incinerates him in the heat of a heated argument. There is also St. Lavrenty, who, as befits a young man, only listens and, as it were, bows before the authority of his elders. Below are two kneeling figures. One of them is Magdalene in clothes of exceptional beauty and with the face of the artist’s wife, whom he depicted wherever he had to deal with female images, and if he sometimes happened to turn to other models, then all women's faces always looked like her, since he constantly had her in front of him and drew her so many times, moreover, he imprinted her image in his soul. The last of the four figures is St. Sebastian is naked and depicted from the back in such a way that to anyone who sees him, it seems not written, but completely alive. And, of course, in comparison with many oil paintings, this thing was recognized by artists as the best. In fact, it shows strict adherence to proportionality in the figures and great consistency in the rendering of facial expressions, since the heads of the young are painted softly, the heads of the old are painted more harshly, and for middle-aged persons something in between is used. In a word, this altar image is excellent in all respects, and it is now in the church of San Jacopo tra e Fossi, on the corner of Via Alberti, along with other works of the same master.

While Andrea, working on these works, was still struggling in Florence, experiencing great need, from which he could not rise, in France, King Francis I had already seen enough of both paintings sent there by Andrea, and rated them much higher many others he received from Rome, Venice and Lombardy. And so, when the king praised them above all measure, they suggested to him that it would not be difficult to lure Andrea to France to serve his majesty, and this led the king to the greatest delight. And so, after everything was arranged and money was sent for the journey, Andrea set off for France with a light heart, taking with him his student Andrea Sguazella 38. When they finally reached the royal court, the king received them very kindly and affably. And before Andrea had even spent one day in the new place, he had already experienced all the generosity and all the attention of the magnanimous king, having received from him gifts of money and rich and honorable outfits. Soon, having started work, he became so beloved by the king himself and the entire court that, being kindly treated by them, he realized that, having left his homeland, he had exchanged extreme poverty for the greatest prosperity.

Among his first works, he painted a portrait of the Dauphin, the king's son, who was barely a few months old, depicting him as he was, in swaddling clothes. Having presented the portrait to the king, he received from him a gift of three hundred gold crowns. Then continuing his work, he painted for the king a figure of Love, which was recognized as an exceptional thing and which the king appreciated according to its merits. 39. The king assigned him a very high salary and did everything possible to ensure that he lived well with him, trying to ensure that he needed, because he liked Andrea for his efficiency in work, as well as his character, since he was a person who was always happy with everything. In addition, Andrea, in every possible way pleasing the entire court, created many more paintings and all sorts of other works. And if he had thought more about where he came from and where fate led him, he would undoubtedly have achieved the highest degree of honor, not to mention wealth. However, one fine day, while he was working on the penitent St. Jerome for the king's mother 40, letters arrived from Florence from his wife, and for one reason or another he began to think about leaving.

And so he began to ask the king to let him go, saying that he needed to visit Florence and that, having settled some of his affairs there, he would certainly return to His Majesty, and in order to feel more calm, he would bring with him his wife, as well as valuable for him paintings and sculptures. The king, believing him, gave him money for this, and Andrea swore on the Gospel that he would return in a few months. Having happily reached Florence, he spent several months carefree enjoying his beautiful wife, friends and hometown.

In the end, when the time came for his return, it turned out that he had spent, without doing anything, not only his own money, but also the royal money on all sorts of construction projects and pleasures. However, although he wanted to return, his wife’s tears and prayers turned out to be stronger than the obligations of the oath promise he made to the king. The king, after Andrea (to please his wife) never returned, became so indignant that for a long time he did not want to see the Florentine painters and swore that if Andrea ever fell into his hands, he would not He won’t be considered a talent and he won’t be happy. So Andrea del Sarto remained forever in Florence and, descending from the very high peaks to the very bottom, he struggled, passing the time as best he could.

After his departure to France, members of the dello Scalzo community, believing that he would never return, commissioned the rest of the painting of the courtyard by Franciabigio, who had already painted two stories in his time. When it became clear to them that Andrea had finally returned to Florence, they persuaded him to get to work again, and he wrote the next four stories there, one after another. On the first - St. John before Herod, on the second - the Feast and Dance of Herodias with very successful and suitable figures, on the third - the Beheading of St. John, where the half-naked figure of the executioner is drawn in the most excellent way, as, indeed, all the other figures, and, finally, on the fourth - Herodias, who brings up a severed head, striking those present, whose figures he beautifully conceived. These stories were at one time a model and a school for many young men, who today have already succeeded in art 41.

Outside the Pinti gate, at the corner of the turn that leads to the monastery of Ingezuati, Andrea painted a fresco in the tabernacle depicting a seated Madonna with a child in her arms and a smiling young St. John 42, fulfilled with greatest art and so perfect that it is highly valued for its beauty and liveliness. The head of the Madonna was painted there from his wife, and this tabernacle, for the indescribable beauty of its painting, truly like a miracle, remained untouched even after in 1530, during the siege of Florence, the Ingezuati monastery itself and many other excellent buildings were destroyed.

During these very years, Bartolomeo Panciati the elder, who was making large trade deals in France, wanted to leave a memory of himself in the city of Lyon: he turned to Baccio d'Agnolo with a request to order Andrea and send to the named city an altar image with the Dormition of the Mother of God and the apostles surrounding her bed 43. Andrea almost finished this work, however, since the board on which he wrote it was somewhat cracked, he either threw it away, then picked it up again, and so it remained not completely finished until his death. Bartolomeo Panciatici the Younger placed it in his house as a work truly worthy of praise for the exceptional beauty of the figures of the apostles, not to mention the figure of the Madonna herself, who is surrounded by a chorus of putti, while others support and exalt her with extraordinary ease. Andrea himself is depicted so naturally, as if alive.Now this work is located on the estate of the Baroncelli family, not far from Florence, in the church that Piero Salviati built for this image near his villa.

In the Servites' garden in the far corner, he painted two stories from Christ's parable about the vineyard on both sides. One of them shows how a vine is planted, tied up and dug up, and then the owner calls those who are idle to work; and one of those who was asked if he was going to work sits scratching his hands and wondering whether he should join the rest of the workers, just like other lazy people who don’t want to work. But the other one is much better, where the same owner pays them, and they grumble and complain, and among them one on the side counts the money, carefully delving into his business, just like a living one, and so is the clerk giving out the money. These frescoes are painted in chiaroscuro with the greatest ease. experienced craftsman 44.

After this, in the novitiate of the same monastery, at the top of the stairs, he painted in a niche, also in fresco, but in color, the most beautiful Lamentation of the Body of Christ. And in the cells of the monastery, where the general of the order, Angelo Aretino, once lived, he once again depicted the Lamentation in a small oil painting, as well as the Nativity of Christ. For Zanotti Bracci, who dreamed of his works, he painted the Virgin, who, kneeling and leaning on a rock, contemplates the infant Christ lying on the folds of fabric and smilingly looking at her, while standing nearby the young St. John points to the Mother of God, as if making it clear that here truly is the son of God. And behind him is Joseph, resting his head with his hands folded on the cliff, as if pleasing his soul at the sight of how the entire human race through this Christmas joined the divine principle 45.

When Cardinal Giulio de' Medici, by order of Pope Leo X, was to provide the stucco and painted decoration of the vault of the great hall of the Villa Medici in Poggio a Caiano, located between Pistoia and Florence 46, the care of this work, as well as all the expenses, was entrusted to the magnificent Ottaviano dei Medici, as a man who, without betraying the precepts of his ancestors, was an expert in this matter and at the same time a friend and patron of all the masters of our arts and who, more than anyone else, found pleasure in having his houses decorated with the most of them outstanding. And so, since the whole work had already been entrusted to Franciabigio, he ordered that he should receive only one third of it, and that the other two thirds should be transferred to Andrea and Jacopo da Pontormo. However, no matter how much the magnificent Ottaviano hurried them, promising and paying money, this work did not come to an end. Andrea, for his part, with great effort, finished only one wall, writing on it a story depicting how all kinds of animals were brought as tribute to Caesar. The drawing for this work is kept in our Book along with many of his other drawings, and, finished in chiaroscuro, it is the most complete of all the drawings he ever made. In order to surpass Franciabigio and Jacopo, Andrea put unprecedented effort into this fresco, building in it a magnificent perspective and a staircase, depicted in the most difficult reduction and leading to the figure of Caesar, decorating it, moreover, with perfectly selected statues, not being satisfied with what he discovered characteristic of him. great talent in the display of those diverse figures that drag so many different animals. These are the figures of an Indian dressed in a yellow jacket and carrying a cage on his shoulders, which is depicted in perspective and in which and on which parrots are sitting, in general - a highly remarkable spectacle, as well as several figures leading Indian goats, lions, giraffes, panthers , lynxes, monkeys and blacks, and all sorts of other wonderful fantasies, combined in a beautiful manner and divinely executed by means of fresco painting. In addition, on the steps of this staircase he depicted a seated dwarf, who in a box holds with him a chameleon, depicted so well that it is difficult to imagine how it was possible to give such beautiful proportions to the shapeless ugliness of such an extremely bizarre form.

However, after the death of Pope Leo, this work remained, as already mentioned, unfinished. And although Duke Alessandro de' Medici dreamed of Jacopo da Pontormo completing it, he was never able to get him to take it on. And indeed, one has to regret that this work remained unfinished, for it is located in the most beautiful hall in the world that can only be found in villas.

Returning to Florence, Andrea painted a painting with the most beautiful nude half-figure of St. John the Baptist, which was commissioned from him by Giovan Maria Benintendi, who subsequently presented it to Duke Cosimo 47.

All this went on as usual, however, every time Andrea remembered everything that happened to him in France, his heart involuntarily sank, and if only he could beg forgiveness for himself for the offense he had committed, he would no doubt return there. Finally, he decided to try his luck and see if his talent would help him in this matter. And so he painted a picture, depicting the same half-naked St. John the Baptist, with the intention of sending it to the chief master of ceremonies of France, in order to regain royal favor in this way. However, for one reason or another, he did not send it and instead sold it to the magnificent Ottaviano de' Medici, who until his death valued it very highly, as did two other paintings of the Madonna, which were painted by Andrea in the same manner and which are kept in the ducal collection. Soon after this, Zanotti Bracci commissioned him for a painting for Bishop Jacques de Beaune, which he executed with the greatest diligence in the hope of regaining the favor of King Francis, to whose service he dreamed of returning 48.

And for Lorenzo Jacopi, he painted a painting of much larger dimensions than usual, which depicts a seated Virgin Mary with a baby in her arms and two other forthcoming figures sitting on the steps of the stairs and in design and color similar to the rest of his works. He executed another most beautiful Madonna for Giovanni d'Agostino Dini, which is still highly valued, and also painted a portrait of Cosimo Lapi with such perfection that he seems completely alive 49.

When in 1523 the plague broke out both in Florence itself and in some places in the surrounding area, Andrea, in order to avoid infection and at the same time work, moved with the help of Antonio Brancacci to Mugello to paint an altar image commissioned by the nuns of San Piero a Luco Camaldulian Order. There he took with him his wife, stepdaughter, wife’s sister and apprentice and, having found peace, set to work, and since the venerable sisters showed more and more affection and attention to his wife, himself and all his household, he is with great love began to execute this image, in which he depicted the Deceased Christ, mourned by the Mother of God, St. John the Evangelist and Magdalene, whose figures are so alive that they seem truly spiritualized and animated 50. In St. John shows the tender affection of the apostle for his teacher, in the sobbing Magdalene her love is visible, and in the face and movement of the Mother of God there is boundless suffering at the sight of her son, whose body is depicted in such relief that it gives the impression of truly dead flesh. And the stricken, those who sympathize with the grief of St. Peter and St. Paul seemed petrified, immersed in the contemplation of the Savior of the world, lying dead in the bosom of his mother. All these surprisingly subtle observations show what joy Aidrea brought both the very tasks posed to him by art and the perfection of their solution. And, to tell the truth, this work brought the monastery great fame than all his magnificent buildings, which caused extraordinary expenses.

Since the danger of the plague had not yet passed, Andrea, having completed the image, lived for several more weeks in the same place, where he was in very good standing and was kindly received by everyone. During this time, in order not to sit idly by, he painted not only the Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth, located in the church on the right hand above the nativity scene, above a small old image, but also on a small canvas the most beautiful head of Christ, somewhat similar to the one above the altar Nunziata, but less finished 51. This head, which can rightfully be ranked among his best works, is now in the monastery of degli Angeli with the most reverend Father Don Antonio of Pisa, an admirer not only of the outstanding representatives of our arts, but of all talents in general. Several copies were made of this painting. The fact is that Don Silvano Razzi entrusted the original to the painter Zanobi Poggini 52 so that he would make one copy of it for Bartolomeo Gondi, who asked him to do so, but the painter made several of them, and they are held in the greatest honor in Florence.

Thus Andrea escaped all danger, thus passing the entire time that the plague lasted, and the nuns received from the talent of this remarkable man a work that bears comparison with the most outstanding pictures created in our days. Therefore, it is not surprising that Ramazzotto, who led one of the enemy parties in Scaricalasino, more than once during the siege of Florence tried to take possession of this painting in order to transport it to Bologna for his chapel in San Michele in Bosco.

Upon returning to Florence, Andrea painted on wood for his closest friend Beccuccio Bicchieraio of Gambassi a floating Virgin with a child in her arms and with the figures of St. standing below. John the Baptist, St. Mary Magdalene, St. Sebastian and St. Roja 53, but on the predella he depicted Beccuccio himself and his wife from life with the greatest likeness. Nowadays this image is located in Gambassi, a place located in Valdelsa between Volterra and Florence.

Commissioned by Zanobi Bracci for the chapel of his villa in Rovezzano, he also painted on wood a most beautiful picture of the Madonna breastfeeding a child and Joseph with such skill that the figures in their volume seem to emerge from the picture, which is now in the house of Messer Antonio Bracci, son Zanobi mentioned by us 54.

At the same time, and in the above-mentioned courtyard dello Scalzo, Andrea wrote two more stories, one of which he depicted Zacharias making a sacrifice and being speechless when an angel appeared, and on the other, the amazingly beautiful Visit of the Mother of God to St. Elizabeth 55.

Going to Rome to pay homage to Pope Clement VII and passing through Florence, the Duke of Mantua Federigo II saw in the Medici house hanging above the door the same portrait of Pope Leo surrounded by Cardinal Giulio dei Medici and Cardinal dei Rossi, which was once painted by Raphael of Urbino. And since he liked this portrait beyond all measure, he decided to take possession of it, since he was a great lover outstanding works painting. And so, being already in Rome and finding the right time, he asked Pope Clement for it as a gift, who graciously agreed to this and ordered Ottaviano Medici, guardian of Ippolito and Alessandro, to pack the portrait and send it to Mantua. The magnificent Ottaviano, who did not want to deprive Florence of such a picture, was very upset by all this, and he was amazed that the pope decided to do this so recklessly. However, he replied that he would not fail to do the Duke a favor, but that instead of the bad frame, he ordered a new, gilded one, after which he would certainly send the picture to Maituya. Having acted in such a way that, as they say, both the sheep were safe and the wolves were fed, he secretly called Andrea to him and told him how the matter stood, and that there was no other way out but to write the most careful copy of this portrait and send it to the Duke, withholding , but under strict secrecy, the original, written by the hand of Raphael 56.

And so, after Andrea promised to do this as best he could, and after the canvas on a stretcher was prepared, similar in size and in all other respects to the original, Andrea set to work, hiding in the house of Messer Ottaviano. He tried so hard that Messer Ottaviano himself, the greatest connoisseur of art, could not distinguish one painting from another, real and genuine, from its copy, since Andrea reproduced everything exactly, even down to the greasy spots. So, having hidden Raphael's original, they sent to Mantua a copy made by Andrea and placed in a similar frame. The Duke was extremely satisfied with the painting sent to him, especially since Giulio Romano, the painter and student of Raphael, without noticing anything, praised it in every possible way. Giulio would have remained unconvinced and would have continued to accept this as the real Raphael, if Giorgio Vasari had not come to Mantua, who, having been brought up in the house of Messer Ottaviano from childhood, himself saw how Andrea painted this picture, and revealed the whole matter. Namely, when Giulio, having treated Vasari in every possible way, showed him, after many antiquities and paintings, this picture of Raphael, as the best of the entire collection, Giorgie said to him: “The thing, of course, is magnificent, but certainly not Raphael.” “How can it be,” answered Giulio, “should I not know this when I recognize all the strokes that were laid down by me?” “You forgot,” continued Giorgie, “Andrea del Sarto wrote this, as proof, here is a note confirming that it was written in Florence (and he showed it), since one portrait was replaced by another when they were there together.” Hearing this, Giulio turned the picture over and, finding the mark, shrugged his shoulders and said: “I value this copy no less than the original, even much higher, for it goes beyond the bounds of nature when an exceptionally gifted person imitates the manner of another so well and achieves such a resemblance.” . However, it is already clear that the value of Andrea’s talent remains unchanged, regardless of whether it manifests itself independently or accompanies someone else’s.

So, thanks to prudence and wise decision Messer Ottaviano and the Duke were satisfied and Florence was not deprived of a work so worthy of her, which was subsequently presented by Duke Alessandro to Messer Ottaviano and which he kept for many years, but finally gave it to Duke Cosimo, who placed it in his dressing room along with many others famous paintings.

While working on this portrait, Andrea painted for the same Messer Ottaviano separately on a special canvas the head of Cardinal Giulio de' Medici, the future Pope Clement, similar to the portrait of Pope Leo painted by Raphael. This head, beautifully painted, was subsequently presented by Messer Ottaviano to the old bishop dei Maria 57.

When, after some time, Messer Baldo Magipi from Prato wished to order a magnificent picturesque image, for which he had already placed a worthy marble frame in this church in advance, Andrea was recommended to him, among many other painters. And so Messer Baldo, who, although he did not understand this very well, was still inclined more towards him than towards anyone else, made him seem to understand that the order would be given to him and no one else. Suddenly a certain Niccolo Soggi 58 from Sansovino, who had some connections in Prato, was introduced to Messer Baldo to carry out this work and received such support from people who claimed that a better master could not be found, that he received the order for the picture. At this time, Andrea's supporters sent for him, and he went to Prato with Domenico Puligo and other painters, his friends, in the firm belief that the commission belonged to him. However, upon arriving there, he discovered that Niccolo had not only convinced Messer Baldo, but had also turned out to be so insolent and impudent that in the presence of Messer Baldo he invited Aidrea to bet with him on any amount of money that the one who would write better would receive. Andrea, who knew his worth, was not taken aback and, despite his usual modesty, replied: “I have an apprentice here with me, though he’s still quite a beginner, and if you want to compete with him in this game, I’ll put money on him, because I will never agree to deal with you, because if I win, then I will not get any honor from it, and if I lose, then I will be the greatest shame.” He told Messer Baldo to give the work to Niccolo, who, they say, would do it in such a way that anyone at the market would surely like it. He himself returned to Florence.

There he was commissioned to paint an altarpiece for Pisa, consisting of five parts 59; it was subsequently installed in the Church of the Madonna di Santa Agnese, which is near the walls of the city between the old fortress and the cathedral. In each part he placed a figure, writing on both sides the miraculous Madonna of St. John the Baptist and St. Peter, in other parts of St. Great Martyr Catherine, St. Agnes and St. Margarita, whose figures, each with their beauty, amaze anyone who looks at them, and who are considered the most charming and most beautiful women he ever painted.

The Servite monk Messer Jacomo ordered one woman, in fulfillment and in replacement of the vow she had made, to order a figure of the Mother of God above the door of the side façade of Nunziata facing the courtyard. And so, going personally to Andrea, he said that he needed to spend this, admittedly small, money, that, in his opinion, this was not so bad for Andrea, who had become so famous for his other works in this monastery, and that it would be better if he, Andrea, and no one else, will do this work. Andrea was rather a gentle man and, listening to the persuasion of Father Iacomo, thinking about benefit and glory, he replied that he would do it willingly; and soon setting to work, he painted in fresco a most beautiful Madonna sitting with a child in her arms in the presence of St. Joseph, leaning his elbows on the bag and deep in reading the book opened in front of him 60. This thing is such that he was able to show in it how much he far surpassed and outstripped all of his predecessors. And indeed, this work, even without other people’s praise, speaks for itself, as something amazing and out of the ordinary.

In the courtyard of the Scalzo community, only one story was missing to complete it completely. And so Andrea, who, having seen the figures begun but not completed by Michelangelo for the sacristy of San Lorenzo, during this time enlarged his style, began this last story and, giving in it the best example of his new achievements, depicted the Nativity of St. John the Baptist in the most magnificent figures, much better and more voluminous than those that he had previously painted in the same place 61. Among the others, especially beautiful is the woman bringing the newborn to the bed on which the saint is reclining. Elizabeth, in turn, is a figure of exceptional beauty. Zechariah, who, placing a piece of paper on one knee and holding it with one hand, writes the name of his son on it with the other, does it so vividly that he lacks nothing but breath. In the same way, the old woman sitting on the bench is magnificent, who laughs at the birth of that other old woman and shows in the movements of her body and face a complete similarity to what we see in nature.

Having completed this work, which is certainly worthy of the highest praise, he painted on wood four most excellent figures of St. John the Baptist, St. John Gualbert, the founder of this order, St. Archangel Michael and St. Bernard, a cardinal and monk of the same order, and among them several puttas, who could not be more lively and beautiful 62. This image is in Vallombrosa in the desert, which is located on a high cliff and in which some monks, separated from the rest, lead a kind of hermitic lifestyle in special rooms called cells.

Then Giuliano Scala ordered him to send to Sarzana an image on wood depicting a seated Virgin Mary with a baby in her arms and two generations of figures - St. Celsus and St. Julia, with the upcoming St. Onuphrius, St. Catherine, St. Benedict, St. Anthony of Padua, St. Peter and St. Mark. It was believed that this image was not inferior to other works of Andrea. And the said Giuliano Scala still had a half-tondo, which depicted the Annunciation and which was supposed to serve as the crown of the entire image as a whole, in return for the money he had overpaid for the order. This semitondo is located in the large apse of the Servite Church in one of the chapels surrounding choir 63.

For many years, the monks of San Salvi never bothered to remind about the execution of that Last Supper 64, which they ordered from Andrea even when he was painting for them an arch with four figures 65. Finally, the abbot, a sensible and respectable man, decided to put an end to this matter . Andrea, having recognized his obligations, did not resist at all, but, having taken up the work, finished it in a few months, finishing it whenever he wanted, a little each time. And he executed it in the best possible way, and they rightly recognized it as the most relaxed and lively, both in color and in design, of all his works, for, among many other things, he gave all the figures solemn grandeur and endless grace, so I don’t really know What can be said about this Last Supper, so as not to somehow underestimate its merits, for it stuns everyone who looks at it. It is not surprising that its quality saved it from destruction during the siege of Florence in 1529, when soldiers and robbers, by order of their superiors, destroyed all the city’s suburbs, all monasteries, hospitals and other buildings. It was they who, having destroyed the church and the bell tower of San Salvi and had already begun to demolish part of the monastery and reached the refectory where this Last Supper is located, stopped, since the one who led them, having seen such amazing painting, about which he had perhaps heard some talk, refused further destruction, postponing this matter until they failed elsewhere.

After this, Andrea painted St. Jacob, nicknamed Nikkio, is a banner for processions, depicting St. Jacob, who tenderly takes the chin of a youth dressed as a flagellant in the presence of another youth holding a book in his hand and written naturally and with beautiful grace.

He also painted a portrait of one monastery clerk, who served the monks of Vallombrosa and was constantly in the village on business for his monastery. At the request of this clerk, his friend, Andrea depicted him in a grape arbor, which he plaited and trimmed with all sorts of whims, but into which, nevertheless, wind and rain freely penetrated. And since at the end of the work Andrea had paints and mortar left, he took the tiles and, calling his wife Lucrezia, said to her: “Come here! Since I still have these paints, I want to paint you so that it can be seen how well you have preserved your age, and at the same time it is clear how much you have changed compared to your previous portraits.” However, his wife, perhaps dreaming of something completely different, did not agree to pose, but Apdrea, as if sensing his approaching end, took a mirror and depicted himself on these tiles with such perfection that it seems completely alive and natural to the highest degree. This portrait is in the possession of the said Madonna Lucretia, his wife, who is still alive today. In the same way, he painted a portrait of a Pisan canon, his closest friend, a very similar and beautifully executed portrait, located in the same Pisa 66.

Then he began 67 cardboards for the Signoria, which, after coloring, were to decorate the parapet of the tribune in the square, depicting on them many fantasies for each city quarter, in addition to all sorts of putti carrying the banners of the guild consuls, not to mention figures personifying all the virtues, as well as mountains and rivers, the most famous in the territory of the Florentine State. However, after Andrea's death, this work remained unfinished, as well as the painting on wood, which he almost completed by order of the Vallombrosan monks for their abbey in Poppy in the Casentine region, depicting the Assumption of the Mother of God, surrounded by many angels, with the upcoming St. John Gualbert, St. Bernard, a cardinal who was said to have been a monk of this order, St. Catherine and St. Fidelius. This image is now in unfinished form in the above-mentioned abbey in Poppi. The same thing happened with a small board, which, when completed, was to be sent to Pisa. He managed to completely complete the most beautiful painting, which is currently in the house of Filippo Salviati, as well as several other 68.

About the same time, Giovanbattista della Palla, having bought up all the sculptures and paintings he could and ordered copies of those that were not available to him, without any twinge of conscience, deprived Florence of countless numbers of the choicest works, only in order to furnish those destined for the King of France apartments, which, being decorated with these objects, were supposed to be distinguished by unprecedented wealth. And this same Giovanbattista, wanting Aidrea to regain the favor of the king and again enter his service, ordered him two paintings. On one of them Andrea painted Abraham about to sacrifice his son, 69 and painted it with such skill that it was believed that he had never painted a better one. The figure of the elder divinely expressed his ardent faith and fortitude, which, without frightening him at all, pushed him to voluntarily kill his own son. The artist also showed how he turned his head, looking at the most beautiful youth, who seemed to order him to stop the blow. I won’t talk about his pose, clothes, shoes and everything else, because it’s impossible to say enough about this, I’ll just say that we see how all naked, exceptionally beautiful and gentle Isaac trembles in death horror and seems already half dead , although he is still unharmed. And besides everything else, his neck is tanned by the sun and all those parts of his body that were covered with clothes during the three-day journey are whiter than white. The ram in the thorny bush also seemed alive, and Isaac’s clothes thrown to the ground seemed not written, but authentic and natural. And there were naked servants guarding a grazing donkey, and a landscape so magnificently executed that the environment where all this actually happened could not have been more beautiful or any other. After the death of Andrea and after the capture of Giovanbattista, this work was bought by Filippo Strozzi, who presented it to Signor Alfonso Davalos, Marquis del Vasto, who ordered it to be transported to the island of Ischia, near Naples, and placed it in the chambers where there were other worthy works of painting.

In another picture he depicted a most beautiful figure of Love with three puttas 70, and after Andrea's death the painter Domenico Conti bought it from his widow, who in turn resold it to Niccolò Antinori, who treasures it as the jewel that it truly is.

Meanwhile, seeing how much Andrea had recently improved his manner, the magnificent Ottaviano dei Medici wished to have a picture painted by his hand. Andrea, feeling obliged to this signor, who always patronized great talents, and especially painters, and wanting to serve him, painted a picture depicting the Madonna sitting on the ground with the child sitting astride her knee and turning to the baby John in the arms of the old woman St. Elizabeth, so well and naturally written that she seems alive 71. However, everything else is written with incredible skill in drawing and execution. Having finished this painting, Andrea took it to Messer Ottaviano, however, since Florence was surrounded by troops besieging it these days, and the signor was occupied with completely different thoughts, he, apologizing to Andrea and thanking him in every possible way, offered to sell it to someone. Andrea answered him this way: “I worked for you, and she will always be yours.” “Sell it,” Ottaviano insisted, “and take the money for yourself, because I know what I’m saying.” And Andrea went home, but no matter how much they asked him, he did not want to give this painting to anyone, and when the siege ended and the Medici returned to Florence, he again brought it to Messer Ottaviano, who now willingly took it and, thanking the artist, paid double for her. Now this thing is in the bedchamber of his wife, Madonna Francesca, sister of the Most Venerable Salviati, who no less values beautiful paintings, left to her by her late husband than by his friends.

Andrea painted another picture, almost equal to Love, mentioned above, for Giovanni Borgherini; he depicted on it the Mother of God and the baby John the Baptist, holding out the likeness of Christ globe, as well as a very beautiful head of St. Josephus 72. Paolo di Terrarossa, who was a common friend of all painters and who had seen the sketch of the above-mentioned Abraham, also wanted to have something painted by Andrea's hand, and so he asked him to make a copy of the head of this Abraham 73. Andrea willingly did him this favor and he did it in such a way that the copy, in its small size, was in no way inferior in grandeur to the original. Paolo liked it very much, but when he, believing that they would ask for as much as it actually cost, asked Andrea about the price, and he demanded some trifle for it, Paolo seemed even ashamed and, shrugging his shoulders, paid in full the required amount. Subsequently, this painting was transported to Naples in... (Omission in the original.), where it is considered the most beautiful and most famous painting of all those there.

During the siege of Florence, when some of the military leaders fled the city, taking with them soldiers' salaries, Andrea was asked to depict them on the façade of the Podesta Palace and in the square, not only these military leaders, but also some of the citizens who also fled and were declared traitors , and Andrea promised to do it. However, in order not to earn himself, like Andrea del Castagno, the nickname “Andrea of ​​the Hanged,” he allegedly entrusted this to his assistant named Bernardo del Buda 74. He himself, having made for himself a secret passage through which he could enter and exit at night, painted these figures so similar that they seemed completely alive and natural. The soldiers who were painted on the square on the facade of the old Mercatanza near Condotta were whitewashed many years ago so that no one could see them, just as the citizens who were painted entirely by his hand on the Podestà Palace were erased.

Finally, since in the last years of his life Andrew was very close to some of the leaders of the St. Sebastian, behind the Servite monastery, he painted for them a half-figure of St. Sebastian is so beautiful, as if he were painting it, and in fact it seemed that these were the last strokes that he was still destined to apply to canvas 75.

At the end of the siege, Andrea kept waiting for his affairs to get better, although he did not really hope for a successful outcome of his French venture. Florence was then filled with soldiers and convoys returning from the battlefield, and among these soldiers there were several spearmen infected with the plague, who brought considerable confusion to the city and soon spread the infection throughout the city. And either from fear, or from disorderly eating of food and after everything that he suffered during the siege, Andrea also fell seriously ill and, feeling irrevocably doomed, went to bed, without any remedy for his illness and without any leaving, since his wife, fearing the plague, stayed as far away from him as possible. And he died, as they say, without anyone noticing. And the members of the Scalzo community, almost without any ceremony, buried him not far from his home, in the Servite church, where everyone who is part of this community is usually buried 76.

Andrea's death was the greatest loss both for his hometown and for art, for until he reached the age of forty-two, he improved more and more from one work to another, so that, had he lived longer, he would invariably continue to improve your art. And in fact, much more can be achieved in art by moving forward with a firm and confident step and only little by little overcoming its difficulties than by immediately violating your own talent and nature. It is true that if Andrea had remained in Rome when he came there to become acquainted with the works of Raphael and Michelangelo, as well as with the statues and ruins of that city, he, no doubt, would have greatly enriched his style in the composition of stories and would eventually have become give your figures more subtlety and more power, which is fully accessible only to those who have spent some time in Rome, constantly communicating with its treasures and carefully studying them. And since he by nature had a soft and charming manner in drawing and at the same time time is easy and with a very lively color, both in oil and in fresco painting, there is no doubt that, had he remained in Rome, he would have surpassed all contemporary artists. However, some believe that he was kept from this by the abundance of ancient and modern works sculpture and painting that he saw in this city, as well as acquaintance with many of Raphael’s young students and other masters who painted “like animals” and worked confidently and without the slightest tension, but whom, due to his innate timidity, he did not dare to bypass. So, having frightened himself, he decided that it was best for him to return to Florence, where, gradually reflecting on everything he had seen in Rome, he nevertheless derived so much benefit from it that his works were highly valued and admired and, little Moreover, after his death they were imitated even more than during his life, and anyone who owns them takes care of them like the apple of his eye, and whoever wants to sell them will get three times the price for them Furthermore that he paid for them; Andrea himself received pennies for them, either because, as already mentioned, he was very timid by nature, or because many woodworkers who made the best things for the houses of Florentine citizens, to please their friends, advised give him orders only knowing that he was in dire need when he was content with any payment. However, all this in no way detracts from the rarest merits of his works, nor from the greatest recognition that they enjoy and deserve, since he was one of the greatest and one of the best masters that have ever existed to this day.

There are many drawings by him in our Book, and they are all very good, but especially beautiful is the drawing he made for the story he wrote in Poggio a Caiano, depicting how all the eastern animals are brought as tribute to Caesar 77. This drawing, made chiaroscuro is an exceptional thing, and it is more complete than any other drawing he has ever made. Indeed, when he drew from life in order to use the drawing for some future work, he made only sketches, being content with the first impression and achieving perfection only in the further course of work on the work itself, which is why these drawings served him more for the memory of what he saw than in order to accurately reproduce them in your paintings.

Andrea left behind him countless students, 78, but not all of them received the same training under his leadership, for they remained with him, some few and some more, but not at all through his fault, but through the fault of his wife, who, neither Without regard to any of them, and powerfully disposing of them all, she kept them in a black body. So, Jacopo da Pontormo, Andrea Sguazzella, who, following the manner of Andrea, worked in France in a palace in the vicinity of Paris very successfully, Solozmeo, Pier Francesco di Jacopo di Sandro, who painted three images on wood in the church of Santo Spirito, then Francesco Salviati and his comrade Giorgio Vasari, who, however, did not stay with Andrea for long, and, finally, the Florentine Jacopo del Conte and Nannoccio, who now has an excellent account in France with Cardinal Tournon. Andrea's student, as well as his great friend and an imitator of his manner was Jacopo, nicknamed Jacope, who, even during Andrea’s lifetime, received much from him, as can be seen in all his works, and most of all in the painting of the facade of the house of the Cavalier Buondelmonti in Piazza Santa Trinita.

After Andrea's death, the heir to his drawings and other artistic works was Domenico Conti 79, who had little success in painting, from whom one night all the drawings, cardboards and other things left by Andrea were stolen, it is believed, by one of his comrades, but It was never possible to establish who exactly. But Domenico Conti did not forget about the benefits that he owed to his teacher, and, wanting to give him after death the honors worthy of him, he ensured that Rafael da Montelupo 80 kindly agreed to sculpt a very elegant marble slab, which was embedded in one of the pillars of the church Servites and on which was inscribed the following epitaph, composed for him by the most learned Messer Pier Vettori, at that time still a youth:

Andreae. Sartio
admirabilis. Ingenii. Pictori
Ac. Veteribus. Illis
Omnium. Iudicio. Comparando
Dominicus. Contes. Discipulus
Pro. Laboribus. In. Se. Instituendo. Susceptis
Grato. Animo. Posuit
Vixit. Ann. XLII. Ob. Ann. MDXXX 81.

A short time later, certain citizens, the trustees of this church, more out of ignorance than out of hostility to the venerable memory of the artist, angry that the slab was placed in this place without their permission, achieved its removal, and in another place it is still were not placed. Perhaps fate itself wanted to show us by this that fatal forces play with a person not only during life, but play with his memory and posthumously. However, in spite of them, the creations and the name of Andrea will live on for an infinitely long time, and my real writings, as I hope, will preserve his memory for many centuries.

So, in conclusion, we must admit that if in everyday life Andrea was a modest man who was content with little, this does not mean at all that in his art he was not an exalted talent, free and capable of any work, who did not make his creations only decorated the places where they reside, and with their manner, design and color he brought the greatest benefit to his fellow painters, and all this with fewer errors than any other Florentine painter, for he, as stated above, perfectly understood nature shadows and light and the dissolution of objects in the darkness and painted his things with tenderness, full of living force, not to mention the fact that he showed how to paint in fresco, maintaining the perfect unity of the whole and without resorting to unnecessary retouching in a dry way, so that each of his the fresco seems to have been painted in one day.

That is why he can be set everywhere as an example to the artists of Tuscany and be awarded, among the most renowned talents among them, an honorary palm and the greatest praise.

, Florence) - Italian painter of the Florentine school. Pupil of Piero di Cosimo.

Biography

Creation

• "Holy Family";
• Life of St. Philippa Benizzi(1509-1510), five frescoes, Church of Santissima Annunziata, Florence;
• Baptism of Christ(1509-1510), the first fresco from the cycle Life of John the Baptist
• Dont touch me(1510), oil, Uffizi, Florence;
• Adoration of the Magi(1511), fresco, Church of Santissima Annunziata, Florence;
• Tondo St. Benedicta, St. John Gualberta, St. Salvi, St. Bernarda degli Uberti And Holy Trinity(1511), frescoes, Church of San Salvi, Florence;
• Annunciation(1512-1513), oil, Pitti Gallery, Florence;
• monochrome frescoes from the history of John the Baptist (1512-1526) in the courtyard of the community dello Scalzo in Florence;
• Sermon of St. Joanna, Crowd baptism, Mercy, Justice(1513-1517), frescoes from the cycle Life of John the Baptist, Community dello Scalzo, Florence;
• Nativity of the Virgin Mary(1514), fresco in the atrium of the Church of Santissima Annunziata, Florence;
• Head of Christ (Christ the Savior) (1515), fresco, Church of Santissima Annunziata, Florence;
• "Annunciation" (1515), Pitti Gallery, Florence;
• frescoes in the Benedictine Vallombrosian monastery of San Salvi (1515-1526);
• Madonna of the Harpies (1517), for which his wife Lucrezia del Fede may have been the model, Uffizi Gallery, Florence;
• Life of John the Baptist, Faith, Hope(1522-1526), ​​final frescoes of the cycle, Community dello Scalzo, Florence;
• last supper(1524), fresco, church

Andrea del Sarto (real name Andrea d'Agnolo di Francesco di Luca di Paolo del Migliore Vannucchi; 1486/87, Florence - January 21, 1531, Florence) - Italian painter of the Florentine school.

Biography of Andrea del Sarto

Born in 1486 in Florence. In his youth, his development as an artist was influenced by Fra Bartolomeo and Leonardo da Vinci, and later by Michelangelo. He was friends with Raphael, Titian, Franciabigio. He worked in Florence, in 1518-1519 he worked in France at the invitation of King Francis I. He returned to Florence in 1519.

Creativity of Andrea del Sarto

Among the artist's first works are five frescoes illustrating the life of St. Philip Benizzi in the courtyard of the Church of Santissima Annunziata in Florence, painted in 1509-1510.

These frescoes are an obvious departure from the traditions of Quattrocento painting, but they give almost no idea of ​​the style of Andrea del Sarto, although they were executed quite professionally.

After four years of work, studying the drawings of Michelangelo and, probably, the paintings of Raphael in Rome, the artist’s creative possibilities expanded significantly; in the fresco of the Nativity of Our Lady (1514), painted in the cloister of the same church, a breadth of interpretation and emotional expressiveness appear. In 1517, Andrea del Sarto married Lucrezia del Fede and in the same year painted his famous Madonna with the Harpies (1517, Florence, Uffizi Gallery). The model for the painting, as for many of his other works, may have been Lucretia.

The French king Francis I, who sought to attract famous Italian artists to his court, invited Andrea del Sarto to France in 1518, since he was considered the best draftsman in Florence.

In Paris he painted the painting La Clemency (Louvre) and soon returned to Florence. Here in 1519 Andrea del Sarto began work on the fresco of the Last Supper in the monastery of San Salvi.

In the works of the last ten years of his life, the artist achieved perfect mastery. Among them are Lamentation (1524, Florence, Pitti Gallery); Madonna del Sacco (1525, Church of Santissima Annunziata), Life of John the Baptist (1515-1526, Florence, Scalzi Monastery), Altar of Sarzana (1528, Berlin - Dahlem, not preserved), Altar of Vallombrosa (1528, Florence, Uffizi Gallery), Assumption (1530, Florence, Pitti Gallery) and others.

The compositions of his works always have a clear structure and easy balance. Young saints are usually depicted in graceful poses, endowed with gentleness and serene calm.

Andrea del Sarto learned from Leonardo da Vinci the use of sfumato, but his coloring is completely original. It has an extraordinary sonority and, in a sense, irrationality, which attracted artists such as Pontormo, and was later developed in the work of other representatives of Mannerism.

Andrea married Lucrezia del Fede, the widow of a hatter named Carlo, on December 26, 1512. Lucrezia appears in many of his paintings, often as the Madonna.

However, Vasari describes her as "unfaithful, jealous, and quarrelsome towards her students." It is also characterized in the poem “Andrea del Sarto” by Robert Browning.

Andrea died in Florence at the age of 43 during a plague epidemic in 1530 or 1531. He was buried without special ceremony in the Servites Church.

In the Biography, Vasari claimed that Andrea received no care from his wife during his terminal illness. However, at that time it was well known that the plague was very contagious, so there is an assumption that Lucretia was simply afraid of contracting a dangerous and often fatal disease.

If this is true, her precaution was justified, since she outlived her husband by 40 years.

Michelangelo, who highly appreciated del Sarto's talent, introduced him in 1524 to Giorgio Vasari, who later became del Sarto's student. However, Vasari sharply criticized his teacher, arguing that, despite having everything necessary to become a great artist, he lacked ambition and the divine fire of inspiration that helped him create more famous contemporaries such as Leonardo, Michelangelo and Raphael.

Andrea del Sarto. Portrait of the sculptor. ca. 1517–1518, London, National Gallery.

Today we will get acquainted with the work of Andrea del Sarto (Andrea d'Agnolo di Francesco born in 1486), an Italian painter of the Florentine school, a student of Piero di Cosimo.
In his youth, his development as an artist was influenced by Fra Bartolomeo and Leonardo da Vinci, and in his more mature years - by Michelangelo. He was friends with Raphael and Titian. He worked in Florence, in 1518-1519 he worked in France at the invitation of King Francis I. He returned to Florence in 1519.

Michelangelo, who highly appreciated del Sarto's talent, introduced him in 1524 to Giorgio Vasari, who later became del Sarto's student. However, Vasari sharply criticized his teacher, arguing that, despite having everything necessary to become a great artist, he lacked the ambition and divine fire of inspiration that helped create his more famous contemporaries such as Leonardo, Michelangelo and Raphael .

The artist's most famous followers in Florence were Jacopo Pontormo, Francesco Salviati and Jacopino del Conte.

Andrea married Lucrezia del Fede, the widow of a hatter named Carlo, on December 26, 1512. Lucrezia appears in many of his paintings, often as the Madonna. However, Vasari describes her as "unfaithful, jealous, and quarrelsome towards her students."
In 1518, King Francis I, having heard about Andrea del Sarto's considerable talent, invited him to work in France. At his court, he surrounded the artist with every conceivable honor and showered him with countless gifts. If the master had remained in France, fame and a comfortable old age would have awaited him. But one fine day he received a letter from Lucretia, where she asked him to return home.

The painter announced to the king that he needed to go to Florence. He swore on the Gospel that he would return, bringing with him his wife and the paintings and sculptures that were most valuable to him. Believing him, Francis I let him go and even provided him with money for the trip. Needless to say, he never saw him again? Upon returning to Florence, Andrea del Sarto was struck by the tears of his wife, who did not want to leave her homeland and go to a foreign land. The prayers of his wife meant more to him than the oaths given to the king, and he remained forever in Florence, missing the opportunity to gain honor and wealth.

Andrea died in Florence at the age of 43 during a plague epidemic in 1530 or 1531. He was buried without special ceremony in the Servites Church. In the Biography, Vasari claimed that Andrea received no care from his wife during his terminal illness.

However, at that time it was well known that the plague was very contagious, so there is an assumption that Lucretia was simply afraid of contracting a dangerous and often fatal disease. If this is true, her precaution was justified, since she outlived her husband by 40 years

Madonna and Child (Madonna of the Harpies) - Andrea del Sarto. 1517
The painting was made for the Church of San Francesco in Florence, so Saint Francis is also depicted on the canvas. On the right is St. John the Evangelist. The title of the painting refers to the strange winged creatures carved in high relief on the pedestal.
Giorgio Vasari believed that these were harpies - monsters from Greek mythology, birds with the heads of women. But most likely this is an image of locusts from the Apocalypse, as indicated by the figure of John the Evangelist, in whose revelation it is said: “And out of the smoke the locusts came out onto the earth, and they were given the power that the scorpions of the earth have.” By depicting the Mother of God standing above the symbols of future disasters, the artist emphasized her role as the savior of the righteous.

"Holy Family with John the Baptist"

The canvas belongs to late period the artist’s creativity, when the features of mannerism were quite clearly identified in his art. The figures are modeled in soft chiaroscuro. Under Sarto's brush, shadows acquire not only transparency, but also color. But if in earlier works the artist “dissolves” the outlines of the figures, immersing them in the air, here the plastic expressiveness of the forms resembles sculpture.

Andrea del Sarto. "Holy Family with Angels"

The paintings are distinguished by their colorful range and richness of chiaroscuro transitions. Significant works- “Holy Family”, “Nativity of Mary” (1514, fresco in the atrium of the Church of Santissima Annunziata), “Annunciation” (1515, Florence, Pitti Gallery), “Madonna with the Harpies” (1517, Florence, Uffizi Gallery), the model for which , perhaps there was his wife Lucrezia del Fede, as well as frescoes from the history of John the Baptist in the monastery of San Salvi (1511-1526)..

Andrea del Sarto possessed a rare quality for a Florentine - a sense of color, which, combined with soft veiling chiaroscuro, gives his images a special poetry, often, unfortunately, turning into external beauty.

Andrea del Sarto. Portrait of a sculptor.
The best example his portrait art can serve as a portrait of a sculptor (London, National Gallery), very expressive in the noble appearance of the model and the aura of poetry with which the artist managed, without turning into sweetness, to surround this bright image.

Andrea del Sarto. Fresco "Nativity of Mary" in the Church of Annunziata 1514

Among the earliest fresco works of Andrea del Sarto is the fresco “Nativity of Mary” in the Church of Annunziata (1514). An example of the artist’s mature manner is the fresco of a semicircular lunette in the cloister of the same church. This three-figure composition (his best monumental work), due to the beauty of its lines and masses, by general decision makes us recall the works of Raphael, although it does not have their content. This painting is excellent in color.

The composition of the fresco “The Birth of Mary” is strictly thought out, but very free in the distribution of accents. Its center should have been a group of women shifted to the left with a nurse holding the newborn Mary in her arms. But the movement of the two maids is directed not towards this group, but towards the reclining figure of Anna.

One of the visitors rushes towards her. The woman in the center, also heading towards Anna, turned to the group with the nurse, and this figure connects two different directions of movement, as if “reconciling” them. One direction of closed movement is concentrated in the group with the nurse, the other - free - is directed towards Anna. Therefore, highlighting the central female figure with the most intense light and color does not seem to be something random and ill-considered. In the diverse range of red colors, a woman’s dress is the brightest and lightest.

Andrea del Sarto The Last Supper 1520-1525. Fresco Monastery of Saint Salvi, Florence

This fresco, remarkable in color, was completed by him in 1527, two years after the no less beautiful “Madonna del Sacco”

In 1525, Andrea del Sarto painted his masterpiece, Madonna del Sacco. The Madonna and the baby clinging to her form a stable pyramid, shifted to the right and located in the foreground.
The group of Madonna and Child is balanced by the figure of Joseph, shifted to the left in depth. Mary wears a faded red robe and a blue cloak; the baby wears a light purple cloth, which echoes the dull purple tones of Joseph's clothing.

Fresco Madonna del Sacco.1525.Basilica Basilica of the Blessed Virgin in Florence.

The bright white color of the bag and the dazzling white book connect the left and right sides of the composition. The Holy Family is placed in a painted niche under the lunette. She sits, leaning back slightly, and her leg protrudes slightly above the step drawn at the front edge.

This connects the painted architecture with the room itself, deepens the space, and includes the viewer in the action unfolding in front of him. And it seems to the viewer that Mary and the baby and Joseph sat down to rest and took refuge under the arch.
“Madonna del Sacco” already in the 16th century became a recognized masterpiece and an object of pilgrimage.

A gallery of the artist’s works can be viewed here. http://maxpark.com/community/6782/content/4986372