Florence, Kunsthistorisches Institut
Florence
The name of the Medici family is inseparably interwoven with the history of Florence. Successive generations of the family occupied and ruled the city for three centuries. The first Medici who managed to insinuate himself into the Florentine oligarchy was the banker, Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici. It was he who laid the foundations for the Medici's activities as patrons of the arts, which was later to become a tradition. A great many of Florence's splendid buildings, statues and paintings can be attributed to this commitment to the arts. Important building projects in the city are also linked to the name of Giovanni, who ordered the renovation of San Lorenzo , which became the family church of the Medici dynasty. Brunelleschi, who was commissioned with the work, also worked on building the dome of the Cathedral of Florence in those same years. The name Brunelleschi is also linked to the building of the Ospedale degli Innocenti orphanage for foundlings, which was regarded as both an urban and charitable investment. Giovanni's son Cosimo, who was later given the nickname "Il Vecchio" ("Cosimo the Elder") supported the rebuilding of the Monastery of San Marco with huge sums of money. The inner square was ornamented by Fra Angelico. In 1444 Cosimo commissioned Michelozzo to build a grandiose, royal residence for him. In building the Palazzo Medici Cosimo created the prototype for the classical, Renaissance palace. In the short period of three decades that followed the erection of the Palazzo Medici thirty other palaces were built, which despite all the differences in their details nevertheless shared fundamental common features. Construction was commenced in 1457 on the Palazzo Pitti , designed by Brunellesch,i while Benedetto Maiano designed the Pallazzo Strozzi , built after 1489, to mention only the most important. In addition to the architects of the period, numerous outstanding painters and sculptors also enjoyed Cosimo's patronage. Included among the sculptors were Donatello and Luca della Robbia, members of the young generation who had learnt their craft in the workshop of Ghiberti, while the painters who won the most commissions were Fra Angelico, Paolo Uccello, Filippino Lippi, and Andrea del Castagno. Cosimo's son and successor, the sickly Piero, who the Florentines referred to as "Il Gotto" ("the Gouty"), primarily engaged Botticelli and Benozzo Gozzoli from among the young artists. The rule of the next of the Medic, Lorenzo, who acquired the name "Il Magnifico" ("the Magnificent") represented the most splendid period in the history of the House of Medici. Lorenzo like his father and his grandfather was a lover of art and philosophy and as such behaved as a generous patron. He founded the University of Florence and opened the school of sculpture in the gardens in the area surrounding San Marco , where Michelangelo also studied. Included among the fine arts artists were protégés of Lorenzo such as Giuliano da Sangallo, Sandro Botticelli and Verrocchio, as well as the most famous of his students Leonardo da Vinci. After Lorenzo's death the Florentines exiled Pietro, or "IL Faiuto", ("the Unfortunate"), Lorenzo's son, along with his whole family, as he had turned out to be both politically and economically unsuitable. A member of the Medici family was not to rule again until 1512. Of Lorenzo's three sons only Giovanni inherited his father's political adeptness and in 1513 he ascended to the papal throne as Leo X The centre of his activities was Rome but traces of them can also be perceived in Florence. Raphael was one of the artists whom he made into a protégé, and Leo commissioned him to build the facade of the Florentine San Lorenzo . After the death of Leo X, which took place in 1521, this branch of the Medici family never again played an important role in Florence. The Medicis were restored to power in 1530 by Emperor Charles V.'s imperial troops after a siege of the city that lasted for 11 months. At this point Alessandro Medici occupied the seat of government as a hereditary duke. After his death he was followed by Cosimo I, who in 1569 accorded himself the title Grand Duke of Tuscany, and by uniting the various parts of the city, the Arno countryside, Arezzo, Cortona, Montepulciano, Volterra, Pisa, Pescia, Pistoia, and in 1555 Siena, he founded Tuscany as a monarchical state. His new rank as archduke entitled him to move out of the Medici residence of Palazzo Medici into the Palazzo Vecchio , which traditionally was regarded as a symbol of the municipal government. However, this building soon proved to be too small, so he purchased and lavishly completed the Palazzo Pitti , which had been left unfinished by the Pitti family in the previous century. Cosimo I commissioned Giorgio Vasari to build the Uffizi and the Vasari- corridor connecting it to the Pitti residence. Renovation of the existing villas in the environs of Florence was carried out with the participation of Cosimo's favourite artists - Giorgio Vasari, Bartolomeo Ammannati, Niccoló Tribolo, and Giambologn, while Agnola Bronzino became the official court portrait painter. After the death of Cosimo I Francesco developed what was later to become the core of the museum in the Uffizi and the implementation of this was entrusted to Buontalenti, who also designed the Medici- theatre housed within the same building complex. 1.2.08 Grand Duke Ferdinando I generally gave commissions for artistic public investment projects that proclaimed the glory of the Medici dynasty. He had a statue of a knight erected in the Piazza della Signoria in the memory of his father, Cosimo I, and also started work on the construction of a grandiose, dynastic mausoleum (Capella dei Principi) in 1602. The following five generations of the family left no significant mark on the city of Florence.
Equestrian statue of Grand Duke Cosimo I
The bronze statue of Cosimo I was commissioned by the grand duke's son Ferdinando de Medici in memory of his deceased father. The work was executed by Giambologna , who sculpted a majestic figure in a regal posture in accordance with Ferdinando's wishes. The statue, which was erected in the Piazza della Signoria in 1594, shows Cosimo as a wise and dignified ruler representing his family's dynastic ambitions. He is seated on his horse holding a field marshal's baton. The reliefs on the pedestal depict the most important events in Cosimo's rule: the conferral of the grand ducal title upon him, his coronation by Pope Pius V and his victorious entry into Siena.
Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore
The construction of the main church in Florence, the Duomo, began in 1296 on the site where the Santa Reparata, an older, much smaller cathedral had once stood. The church was designed by Arnolfo di Cambio (ca. 1250-1302) but his premature death brought the monumental construction project to a halt in the first decade of the 14th century, when only the first tier of the main facade and some intercolumniations of the front walls of the side- aisles had been completed. The original design was altered several times by several architects, such as Francesco Talenti, Andrea Pisano and Giovanni di Lapo Ghini. The final design was approved in 1368 by a committee established specifically for this project, and this version had to be strictly adhered to by a series of architects in decades that followed. This design specified the exact size and shape of the cupola to be built but the execution of the vault with a span of 45 meters at the drum and nearly 100 in height posed a serious challenge for builders in the next decades, and a competition was announced in 1417 for its construction. The realisation of the design was held to be impossible without a solid scaffolding and a buttress. Some absurd solutions were also proposed, for example the building of an artificial hill with coins hidden inside it instead of a wooden scaffolding where the cupola was supposed to stand, which the poor of the city would remove after the construction has been completed. In the end the competition was won by Filippo Brunelleschi's ingenious design, in which a double shell of varying widths joined by arch-buttresses and consoles was built upwards layer by layer. A movable scaffolding was fitted onto the structure and was adjusted to the size of each ring of the cupola. According to an anecdote, Brunelleschi asked the sceptics of his project to put an egg on a table standing on its tip without falling. Naturally, nobody was able to do this. Then he knocked the tip of the egg against the table to form a dent and firmly placed it on the table. Upon seeing this, his rivals were tongue-tied. Thus, Brunelleschi's cupola resembled an egg dented on its tip. The Duomo's exterior walls are faced in bands of polychrome marble designed by Giotto. The unfinished western main facade, conceived by Arnolfo di Cambio, was pulled down in 1588 and it was built in its present form in the 19th century. The model displayed at the current exhibition probably formed part of the model made of the complete cathedral commissioned by the construction committee established to build the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore in 1429 and to gain an overall picture of how the works were proceeding when the project was nearing the completion of the cupola and the lantern was next to be designed. Scholars agree that the model was made at the time of the construction of the cupola, i.e. prior to 1465, when the marble facing began and Brunelleschi's design was slightly restructured.
Ospedale degli Innocenti
The building managed and built by the Silk Guild of Florence commissioned the construction project of the Ospedale degli Innocento orphanage to Filippo Brunelleschi in 1419. Since Brunelleschi did not personally participate in the works, his successor Francesco Luna did not strictly follow all the instructions laid down in the original design. For example, he omitted the pilastered articulation of the first floor facade and extended the facade on both sides, contrary to Brunelleschi's original design which only included the nine-bay loggia. The plain wall of the first floor is articulated by the gabled windows above the spacious loggia. Following the principles of Vitruvius, the architect and theoretician of ancient Rome, the entire facade is defined by regularity and geometrical order. For example, the height of the slender columns is exactly the same as the distance between two columns and the height of the upper level from the architrave to the roof; the distance between the entablature under the windows and the last step of the staircase leading up to the loggia is exactly twice the height of the columns. Brunelleschi's simple design does not exclusively derive from the building's function and secular character but rather reflects the Renaissance concept of high artistic execution in public buildings. This building represents the first genuine example of Renaissance architecture. The orphanage building's design is enlivened with ten ceramic tondi, which were placed above the columns around 1463. Andrea della Robbia's colour round reliefs feature a baby in swaddling clothes in a blue background, indicating the function of the institution and eliciting sympathy from generous- hearted passers-by.
Palazzo Strozzi
After a prolonged feud between the wealthy merchant family, the Strozzi, and the most prestigious family of Florence, the Medici, Filippo Strozzi decided to win the support of his rivals since he needed their approval for the implementation of his grandiose plan to build a palace. First he presented a rather simple design to Lorenzo de Medici , who, being an enthusiast developer of the city, demanded that the building be far more embellished. After fifteen houses were demolished, one of Florence's largest and most magnificent secular buildings was erected. Three architects were involved in the construction, namely Benedetto da Maiano , Simone del Pollaiuolo and Giuliano da Sangallo . The three-storey edifice ends in a defining cornice and its heavy mass effect is chiefly created by the rusticated masonry, which is less pronounced towards the upper storeys. The wrought iron lanterns on the corners and the cressets adorning the facade are the work of Niccolo Grosso. Today the palace is used for numerous events and houses some research institutes. The disassemblable wooden model - displayed at the current exhibition - was made by Giuliano da Sangallo between 1489 and 1490. It comprises three levels, corresponding to the storeys of the palace, which can be easily removed, revealing the interior spaces. When examined closely, structural lines of the plan can be seen engraved and drawn in ink, especially in places where the ashlars of the exterior, modelled from wood, have come off.
The model and the completed palace show a close resemblance, although some significant differences can be discovered. The ashlar on the facade of Palazzo Strozzi is smoother and protrudes from the wall surface less and less with each successive storey. In contrast, on the model the two lower storeys are faced with ashlar but flat stone panelling is designed for the third storey. The scale and proportions of the model and the completed building are also at variance, since the upper storeys are built taller in the real building. A final difference is that a spectacular main cornice caps the actual building but cannot be seen in the model. The study of the model for Palazzo Strozzi also helps us to learn about the inner layout of Florentine houses of the period. Fascinating research into this aspect of architecture has enabled us to reconstruct interiors, describe their characteristics and determine their functions. The model preserved in Bargello is especially significant since it is the only complete model that has survived of civil Renaissance architecture.
Palazzo Medici-Riccardi
The construction of Palazzo Medici began in 1444 based on Michelozzo's design and under his direction. The commissioner, Cosimo de' Medici had rejected a design submitted by Brunelleschi on the grounds that it was too grand and magnificent. Despite being extremely rich, Cosimo took pains not to flaunt his wealth and power in order to avoid provoking people. As a prototype of the classical Renaissance palazzo, Michelozzo's relatively subdued yet monumental edifice fundamentally defined the secular architecture of the period. Several architectural elements of the tripartite facade show the influence of antiquity. As in similar buildings in Florence, stringcourses divide the building into stories, the rustication on which becomes finer as the eye moves up. The evenly arched arcades render openness to the otherwise enclosed cortile. The frieze above the arches is decorated with bas-relief tondos showing the Medici coat-of-arms and biblical scenes. One of the relatively small chambers of the Palazzo Medici was furnished as a domestic chapel. Besides the richly adorned coffered ceiling Benozzo Gozzoli's original frescoes painted around 1460 can also be seen here, as well as a copy of Filippo Lippi's Adoration of the Child (the original can be found in the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin). The palace was acquired by the Riccardi family in 1659. During the reconstruction that ensued the front facade was extended by seven window axes, thus significantly altering the original, harmonious proportions of Palazzo Medici.
Palazzo Pitti
Luca Pitti, a wealthy Florentine merchant, wanted his new family residence to outshine all the other palaces in the city, but especially those of his rivals, the Medic. He gave a commission for a palazzo that would be larger and more splendid than any other so far built. Although the identity of the first designer of the Pitti palace is still a matter of debate this three-floored palace built between 1557 and 1566 was probably the creative work of Brunelleschi . After the Pitti family went bankrupt the building came into the possession of Cosimo I's consort Eleonora di Toledo, the Duchess of Florence, who asked Bartololeo Ammanati to finish the not quite completed building and to extend it. The architect joined the two side-wings of the facade above the garden to the palace, and created a beautiful, mannerist inner courtyard. It is primarily the organisation of the orders (proceeding upwards, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian) that hint at a classical design. The three storeys separated from each other by a highly distinct stone-cornice are rendered individual characteristic features by the different shapes of the broad stones. In the first half of the 17th century Giulio and Alfonso Parigi continued to build the facade of the palace overlooking the town and it was at this time that it reached the size of 205 metres that it has today. Until the middle of the 19th century the palace was the residence of the archduke, and initially the ruling seat of the House of the Medicis and then that of the House of Lotaringia. Finally it was lived in by members of the royal family in a united Italy. Today the palace and its adjoining Boboli garden function as a museum.
Palazzo Vecchio
Construction work on Palazzo Vecchio, one of Florence's most famous secular buildings, began in 1299 based on the design of Arnolfo di Cambio. From 1314 the palace became the headquarters of the town's magistrate, where the leading members (priori) of the guilds and the gonfalonieres of justice (gonfaloniere della giustizia) occupied their offices. The building was reconstructed and extended several times during the following centuries in accordance with its changing functions, and this was reflected in the various names it was given: Palazzo del Popolo, Palazzo della Signoria, Palazzo dei Priori and Palazzo Ducale. When Cosimo I , Duke of Florence moved his residence to the building in 1540, it was named Palazzo Vecchio, meaning old palace as opposed to the new palace of Palazzo Medici. The fortress-like Palazzo Vecchio is defined by the rough ashlar masonry (rustication) and the superstructure with a projecting crenulated battlement which crowns the massive block. Arnolfo di Cambio incorporated a medieval tower that was originally standing here into the building, which is why the 94-metre-tall slender tower is positioned asymmetrically. Around the middle of the 15th century Michelozzo rebuilt the palace's inner courtyard. His arcaded cloister of harmonious proportions was subsequently adorned with rich ornamentation on the occasion of the wedding celebration of Francesco I and Johanna of Austria. The walls were painted with the views of the towns under the bride's dominion, the columns and pillars were decorated with guilt stuccoes, and the vaults were furnished with grotesque motifs. The most ornate chamber in Palazzo Vecchio, the Consiglio Maggiore, was the seat of the city's 500-member Grand Council. In 1503 Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo were commissioned to furnish the longitudinal wall of the chamber with decorations. The cartoons for two battle scenes from the history of Florence were prepared but upon the return of the Medici to Florence in 1512 the monumental plan was abandoned. The sidewalls and the ceiling are now adorned by frescoes depicting the history of Florence, painted by Giorgio Vasari and his students. Also designed by Vasari was the barrel vaulted "Studiolo" of Francesco I de' Medici without windows. This richly adorned study perfectly embodies the Mannerist spirit. The Sala degli Elementi (Apartments of the Elements) on the second floor was commissioned by Cosimo I to Battista del Tasso. After the artist's death the decoration of the halls was executed by Vasari, whose painting of the elements was his first work for the Medici family. Many of the ornate chambers and halls of the Palazzo Vecchio preserve the magnificent hand of artists such as Giuliano da Maiano, Benedetto da Maiano , Francesco Salviati, Domenico Ghirlandaio , Bronzino and Donatello .
San Lorenzo
The monastic complex of San Lorenzo developed from one of the oldest churches (ca. 380 A.D.) of Florence, which was rebuilt in the Romanesque style in the 11th century. Then, after a conflagration, the construction of today's church was begun in the early 1420s based on Brunelleschi's design. After an enthusiastic start, work soon slowed down because most of the financial backers could not afford the escalating costs. Finally, the Medici family provided the enormous sum that was needed to complete the basilica and thus San Lorenzo became their family church. The entire project was only completed long after Brunelleschi's death in 1446. The last phase of the construction was directed by Antonio Manetti. The main facade overlooking the piazza remained unplastered even though according to the drawing displayed at the current exhibition Michelangelo made designs for it. The inner section of the facade wall was also designed by Michelangelo on the request of Pope Leo X, i.e. Giovanni de' Medici . The overall design for the basilica's interior layout was executed according to Brunelleschi's plans. The Sagrestia Vecchia, the Old Renaissance Sacristy with a central plan and covered with a dome, opens off the north transept of San Lorenzo and is one of the earliest and most beautiful masterpieces of Filippo Brunelleschi's architectural genius. Its bronze doors as well as the stuccos in the interior depicting the four evangelists and the Story of Saint John the Baptist were made by Donatello between 1434 and 1443.
Michelangelo: Third plan made for the facade of San Lorenzo
Three different concepts can be traced in Michelangelo's plans made for the facade of the church of San Lorenzo (never actually executed), all of which can be studied in the three drawings in the collection of Casa Buonarroti. The first project, prepared in December 1516, contained innovative and daring ideas, but was followed by a second one just a month later. The third project, the most mature and clearly delineated of the three - displayed at the current exhibition - was conceived in the spring of 1517. After finally defeating his numerous and excellent rivals who competed for the same commission, Michelangelo came up with a special solution to how the classical orders of columns can be correctly applied on the irregular facade of a church with a basilical layout. In his plan the facade is conceived of as a separate unit and the church's structure is virtually disregarded and concealed behind the secular scenery of a splendid private palazzo. Michelangelo's drawing of the facade can be seen at the centre bottom of the recto of the sheet. The rest of the plans on the recto as well as the rigid but at the same time uncertain figure sketches are obviously by someone else's hand: Paola Barocchi proposes that they were drawn by Michelangelo's student, Antonio Mini.
San Marco
In 1434 Pope Eugene IV donated the then quite dilapidated medieval convent of San Marco to the Dominicans of Fiesole. Then, Cosimo de' Medici , who had interceded with the pope for the Dominicans, commissioned Michelozzo to rebuild the religious complex (1437-1452), which he paid for mostly from his own funds. As far as gossip has it, Cosimo, who was infamous for some dubious financial transactions, wanted to ease his troubled conscience with such magnanimous donations. Major reconstruction work was carried out on the complex under the direction of Giambologna around the end of the 16th century and also at the time of the Baroque era. Piero Francesco Silvani renovated the interior in 1678. The Baroque facade, which can be seen today, is the work of Gioacchino Pronti from 1780. A large part of the convent complex is still inhabited by monks; however, the oldest section surrounding the cloister of Saint Antoninus, now houses a museum. The cloister is decorated by Fra Angelico's frescoes and visitors can admire frescoes and panels by Fra Bartolomeo, among others, in the exhibition halls opening from here. The small refectory is adorned by Ghirlandaio's fresco, the Last Supper, the companion piece for which, both in its subject and execution, is found in the convent of Ognissanti.
Uffizi
The name of Palazzo Uffizi (ufficio: offices) refers to the building's original function. It was commissioned by the Grand Duke Cosimo I as the centre of Florentine offices. The design and direction of the construction were entrusted to Giorgio Vasari in 1559, who was presented with quite a few challenges in his, for example the immediate vicinity of the splendid Palazzo Vecchio and problems related to statics due to the closeness of the Arno riverbank. The topography of the location necessitated some compromises in the aesthetic aspect of the design, since even though some buildings could be demolished, there were others that had to be integrated into the new palace: finally, Vasari decided to erect a building with a U-shaped ground plan with two of its extensive wings enclosing a long, street-like courtyard. After Vasari's death in 1574, the project was carried on in accordance with his plans under the direction of Buontalenti and Alfonso da Parigi. Since the facade was designed according to the proportions and articulation characteristic of Mannerist architecture, the markedly longitudinal horizontal aspect of the building had to be counterbalanced by extending the vertical elements. It was Cosimo I's son, Grand Duke Francesco I , who decided to transfer the huge Medici Collection to the upper floor of the Palazzo Uffizi and to this effect he had the circular gallery, which was originally designed as an open loggia, glazed in 1581, not long after the completion of the building. From this point on the passageways bathed by natural light have been used to display works of art. After the male line of the Medici house became extinct in 1737 Cosimo III's daughter, Anna Maria Ludovica, the sole heiress to the Medici fortune, bequeathed her entire fine arts collection to the state of Tuscany on condition that it must always remain in Florence. From that time on the Galleria degli Uffizi has been one of the richest and most treasured fine arts collections in Italy and indeed in the whole world.
Vasari corridor
The closed corridor built over the Ponte Vecchio, i.e. the Old Bridge, connecting the Palazzo Uffizi with the Palazzo Pitti , across the Arno River is a truly unique piece of urban architecture. The construction was commissioned by Cosimo I to Giorgio Vasari , who executed the project within five months. The opening ceremony took place in autumn 1565, on the occasion of the wedding of the Grand Duke Francesco de' Medici and Johanna of Austria. Numerous valuable paintings that could no longer be housed in the Uffizi due to the scarcity of space are now exhibited in the famous Corridoio Vasarino, which is hundreds of meters in length. In addition to some major works from the 17th and 18th centuries, a significant part of the portrait collection instituted by the bishop Leopoldo de' Medici is also on display here.