A man of many talents, Pierre de Cortone was an Italian decorator, architect, and painter. Living as a multifaceted creative person through the Baroque period, Pierre was best known for designing a church called “Santi Luca e Martina” and his work on a ceiling fresco at Barberini Palace.
Pierre was born in a town in Italy called Cortona, and studied under his father who was a stonemason during his childhood. He then moved to Florence to train as a painter with the Florentine painters Andrea Commodi and Baccio Ciarpi as teachers. His main artistic influence was Raphael’s work.
One of his first notable works was a commission for the Sacchetti family titled “Rape of the Sabine Women”. The piece itself has a high level of energy and frantic movement, perfectly capturing the horrible event. The expressions on the women juxtaposed to the unempathetic look of the men twists a knife in my chest.
Pietro was known by his contemporaries for his strong sense of colour and a strong sense of perspective. Pietro also held firmly on a philosophy that a history painting should use as many figures needed to give it a dramatic atmosphere, something that one of his rivals Sacchi Andrea vehemently disagreed with.
My favourite piece of his is “Venus as Huntress Appears to Aeneas”. I love the naturalistic colour and style. I think you can get an understanding of Pietro’s acute sense of colour from this painting. The muted colours of the surrounding characters contrasting against Aeneas’s brilliant red cloak draws your eyes to him. I am also fond of the atmosphere the scenery creates, it reminds me of the beginning of autumn.
Pietro also was appointed head of the Academy of St. Luke in Rome, where he taught many students but his most notable student was Romanelli Giovanni Francesco. Pietro passed on his energetic compositions and love of colour, which is evident in Francesco’s work.
Reference
Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Pietro da Cortona. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved October 17, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pietro-da-Cortona.
Pietro Da Cortona (Pietro Berrettini) (1596 – 1669). (1996). In S. West (Ed.), The Bloomsbury Guide to Art. Bloomsbury. Credo Reference: https://ezproxy.capilanou.ca/login?url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/bga/pietro_da_cortona_pietro_berrettini_1596_1669/0?institutionId=6884
Emma,
Excellent work on this lesser now painter Cortona. I really appreciate it when students dive deeper into art history and uncover these lesser known but remarkable artists. You have solid information combined with your personal thoughts and feelings about the work in question. This is just what I’m looking for. I’ve given you 2/2 on your first two posts so well done!
Jeff