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Moretto da Brescia

Italia • 1498−1554

His teacher was Fioravante Ferramola (according to other sources — Vincenzo Foppa, among his mentors are also mentioned Titian, Jacopo Palma, and Girolamo Romanino). Artists of steel and both of his brothers Pietro and Jacopo.

In 1521 he painted together with Romanino Chapel Sacramento Cathedral of Brescia, in 1522-1524 he worked in Padua. He was also joint work with Lorenzo Lotto and Floriano by Ferramola.

Alexander Buonvicino (C. 1498-1554), nicknamed Moretto, born at Brescia. His art is a significant influence of familiarity with the paintings of the masters Romanino of Brescia. With intense interest he studied the work of L. Lotto, and Titian. Almost his entire life spent Moretto in Brescia and its immediate surroundings, only occasionally fulfilling orders in other places. It is known that he worked in Bergamo (1529), Milan, Verona (1540-1541).

Compositional harmony, tranquility and balance various elements of the painting, characteristic of the painting of the High Renaissance in the cities of Central Italy, connected in his work with the emotionality, expressiveness of color, typical of the Venetian school. Paintings Moretto is easy to discern in the particular soft silver tone that gives them dignity. In Brescia survived a lot of songs Moretto on religious themes, the altar of images. Such, for example, "Taking the virgin into heaven" in the Church of San Nazario e Celso. They can add a "Feast in the house of Levi" (1544) in the Church of Santa Maria del La Pieta in Verona. Now many of these songs moved in different Italian and foreign museums. Among them are "Christ at Emmaus" in the city gallery of Milan, the "Madonna with saints" in Frankfurt's Museum and the famous painting of the Vienna Kunsthistorisches Museum "Saint Justina with a Donor". As a rule, Moretto create images of people is a majestic, beautiful. However, often we do not feel a genuine inner life, might, like Titian. Next to the giants of High Renaissance painting, it seems somewhat constrained by provincial notice known the complexity of his theories. But, however, in this severity, permanence, can be seen otherwise. Behind this stands the world of a small provincial town of the great era of art.

From Moretto is clearly less strongly sounds pathetic, heroic beginning. It suddenly attracted to the lyrics in his compositions elements can be purely domestic, it is possible to guess the attraction to the story. All this creates a complex unity, when the demands and tastes of the time closely overlap with personal inclinations. But with all the skill, the originality of the big tracks Moretto probably stronger than he was in a different genre - portrait. It is no exaggeration to call him among the best portraitists of the era when the art of portraiture was at an all-time high. Special, almost universal popularity among the portraits executed by the artist, received the "portrait of a man" that adorns the National gallery in London. Moretto depicted his hero in a free, relaxed posture, extremely natural and true. At a time when fashion was an idealized portrait (although, of course, the development of the portrait art of the epoch is not exhausted by it), it was unusual and brave. Smooth, soft style of painting is perfectly suited to this immediate transfer of impressions from one person. One of the first in the European art, he, violating the usual compositional scheme, depicted his character in the growth.

The pupil of Moretto, a painter of Bergamo, Giovanni Moroni, popularized many of the techniques of portraiture wizard. Creative aspirations Moretto was in some measure the opposite already started to spread widely in the Italian art with the mannerism. He did not follow the mechanical principles of portraiture of the great masters of the High Renaissance - that would be imitation. But in his works was based on their achievements, trying to follow their ideals.

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