XVI, XVII, XVIII, Pergolesi Inuet. Scult. and Publishd according to act of Parliament the ist of September 1777

Title

XVI, XVII, XVIII, Pergolesi Inuet. Scult. and Publishd according to act of Parliament the ist of September 1777

Magnificently gouache-painted original graphic shows a design by Pergolesi Michelangelo with three ornamental decorative elements on a sheet."

dated 1777

Artist

Pergolesi (1801-??)

Michelangelo Pergolesi (1801 – ?) was an Italian decorative artist of the 18th century who had a significant influence on Classicism in England. As a young man in Italy, Pergolesi trained as a silversmith, engraver, and copperplate engraver. Neither his place of birth nor his exact birth year is known. In England, he worked primarily for the architects Robert Adam and his brother James Adam. Pergolesi was particularly known for ornamental designs that often featured mythological scenes, vases, arabesques, putti, and garlands.Robert and James Adam are considered the most important architects in late 18th-century England. They developed Palladian Neoclassicism—a light, airy, and elegant style known as the Adam style. The interiors designed by the Adams were adorned with classical and Arcadian motifs, sometimes executed by Pergolesi himself or by Angelica Kauffman, her husband Antonio Zucchi, or Giovanni Battista Cipriani. From around 1760, Pergolesi collaborated closely with the Adam brothers. The Italian artist designed furniture, mantelpieces, ceilings, cornices, friezes, chandeliers, and entire wall schemes. His decorative elements were based on classical models such as vases, gods, sphinxes, torches, war trophies, standards, arabesques, and festoons. The archaeological discoveries from Pompeii and Herculaneum were central to his stylistic vocabulary. Pergolesi freely combined and varied these floating medallions, urns, and grotesques. Pergolesi's works can be found in renowned collections worldwide, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Between 1777 and 1801, he published his designs in loose sheets and in the volume "Designs for Various Ornaments on Seventy Plates" (London, 1791), which strongly inspired contemporary artists.

Historical Description

Illustrations of the famous paintings were already made by Raphael's contemporaries. Especially in the course of the rediscovery of the Renaissance by neoclassicism in the 18th and 19th centuries, however, the frescoes were considered exemplary for architects and draftsmen. - In addition to the overview panorama, the depictions show elaborately detailed pilasters, paneling, ceiling elements, and two doorways with floral, figural, and architectural motifs. In the places that had been destroyed by weathering and wear in the original frescoes, Valpato and Ottaviani took the liberty of replacing them with elements from the wall hangings in the Vatican designed by Raphael. In 1509 Donato Bramante began the construction of three-story arcades on three sides of the Cortile di San Damaso (Damaus Courtyard) in the Vatican Palace. After his death, Raphael completed the complex in 1514. The second-floor loggia on the west side was decorated by Raphael and his collaborators between 1517 and 1519. Giulio Romano and Giovanni da Udine were especially active here. The basic idea was an ornamental decoration, especially of the pilasters, and a pictorial painting of the vaults with scenes from the Bible. The design was inspired by ancient decorations discovered in vaults under the ruins of the Baths of Titus. 13 vaults showed a brilliant combination of stucco and painting, of image and ornament. The Raphael team created an overwhelming variety of forms and motifs with enormous ingenuity in detail. The passage has gained great fame and importance as "Raphael's loggias". Regarding the dissemination of Raphael's pictorial ideas by means of prints, it can be said that for a long time almost exclusively the biblical scenes were reproduced. This happened especially in the 17th century with several complete editions. The pillar and vault decorations with their pioneering grotesque painting remained almost unnoticed for a long time. Against this background, the comprehensive graphic series "Loggie di Rafaele nel Vaticano", which was edited in the 1770s, is of utmost importance. With it, for the first time, almost the complete loggia design was available in high quality illustrations. Initially, since the late 1760s, Giovanni Ottaviani had worked with the painter Gaetano Savorelli and the architect Pietro Camporesi. The importance of their undertaking is evidenced by the fact that Pope Clement XIII (1758-1769) had given his approval. In 1772 Giovanni Volpato and then Ludovico Teseo joined them.