Luca della Robbia: Tin-Glazed Terracotta

 

"La Vierge a L'Enfant avec Trois
Cherubim" by Andrea della Robbia

"When Luca della Robbia thought about what he received for his work and the time he had expended in its production, he perceived that he had made but small gains, and that the labour had been excessive. He determined, therefore, to abandon marble and bronze, seeing if he could not derive a more profitable return from some other source. Wherefore, reflecting that it cost but little trouble to work in clay and that only one thing was required, namely, to find some method by which the work produced in that material should be rendered durable, he set out to discover the means by which to do that.

Luca found that if he covered his figures with a coating of glaze, formed from the mixture of tin, litharge, antimony, and other minerals and mixtures, carefully prepared by the action of fire in a furnace made for the purpose, the desired effect was produced to perfection. For this process [tin-glazed terracotta], then, Luca, as being its inventor, received the highest praise, and indeed, all future ages will be indebted to him for the same. Then he added the further invention of giving this type of work color, to the astonishment and delight of all who beheld them. 

Among the first who gave Luca commissions to execute works of this description, was the magnificent Piero di Cosimo de' Medici, who caused him to decorate a small study in his palace. The ceiling of the study is a half circle; and here, as well as for the pavement, Luca executed various devices. The fame of these works having spread, not only throughout Italy, but over all Europe, there were so many persons desirous of possessing them, that the Florentine merchants kept Luca continually at this labour, to his great profit. They then dispatched the products all over the world.

And now the master himself could no longer supply the numbers required. He therefore took his brothers, Ottaviano and Agostino from the chisel, and set them to these works, from which both he and they gained much more than they had previously been able to earn by their works in sculpture."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Lives of Seventy of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects" by Georgio Vasari.)

*Litharge: lead monoxide, especially a red form used as a pigment and in glass and ceramics

Luca Della Robbia: The Cantoria

Detail of the "Cantoria" by Luca della Robbia

"Luca Della Robbia had scarcely completed his fifteenth year, when he was taken with other young sculptors to Rimini, for the purpose of preparing certain marble ornaments and figures for the lord of that city, who was then building a chapel in the church of San Francesco. It was for a sepulchre for his wife, who had recently died. In this work Luca gave a creditable specimen of his abilities which are still to be seen there, but he was soon recalled to Florence. 

There he executed five small historical representations for the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. These were placed on that side of the tower beside figures delineating the arts and sciences by Andrea Pisano. 

He was also commissioned by Messer Vieri dei Medici, a great and popular citizen of that day, by whom Luca was much beloved, to prepare the marble ornaments of an organ which was being constructed on a very grand scale. Luca executed certain stories, which were represented by singing choristers. He gave these such earnest attention and succeeded so well, that although the figures are high up, the spectator can nevertheless distinguish the inflation of throat in the singers, and the action of the leader as he beats the measure with his hands, with all the varied modes of playing the instruments. On the grand cornice of this work, Luca erected two figures of gilded metal, representing two angels and finished with great skill, as indeed is the whole piece, which was held to be one of rare beauty. 

However, Donatello, who afterwards constructed the ornaments placed opposite to this, displayed much greater judgment and more facility than had been exhibited by Luca. For Donato completed his work almost entirely from the rough sketches, without delicacy of finish, so that it actually has a much better effect in the distance than that of Luca, which, although well designed and carefully done, becomes lost to the observer in the distance.

And this is a point to which artists should give much consideration, since experience teaches us that whatever is to be looked at from a distance, whether painting, sculpture, or any other work of similar kind, has ever more force and effect then merely a striking and beautiful sketch when delicately finished. It would appear, also, that the poetic fire of the author frequently acts with most efficiency in a rapid sketch, by which his inspiration is expressed in a few strokes suddenly thrown off in the first ardours of composition. A too anxious care and labour will often deprive the works of him, who never knows when to take his hands from them, of all force and character."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Lives of Seventy of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects" by Giorgio Vasari.)

Luca Della Robbia: Florentine Sculptor (1400-1482)

Detail from the "Cantoria"
by Luca Della Robbia

"The Florentine sculptor, Luca della Robbia, was born in the year 1388, in the house of his forefathers in Florence. He was there carefully reared and educated, then placed by his father to learn the art of the goldsmith with Leonardo di Ser Giovanni, who was then held to be the best master in Florence for that vocation. 

Luca therefore having learned to draw and to model in wax found his confidence increase, and set himself to attempt certain works in marble and bronze. In these also he succeeded tolerably well, and this caused him altogether to abandon his trade of a goldsmith and give himself up entirely to sculpture, insomuch that he did nothing but work with his chisel all day, and by night he practiced himself in drawing. This he did with so much zeal, that when his feet were often frozen with cold in the night-time, he kept them in a basket of shavings to warm them.

No man ever becomes distinguished in any art whatsoever who does not early begin to acquire the power of supporting heat, cold, hunger, thirst and other discomforts. Those persons deceive themselves altogether who suppose that while taking their ease and surrounded by all the enjoyments of the world, they they may still attain to honourable distinction - for it is not by sleeping, but by waking, watching, and labouring continually that proficiency is attained and reputation acquired."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Lives of Seventy of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects' edited by  E.H. and E.W. Blashfield and A. A. Hopkins.)

Charles Sprague Pearce: Paintings of Peasants

"Peines de Coeur" by Charles Sprague Pearce

"Not easily satisfied, Charles Sprague Pearce took on yet another theme: the peasant, a theme that had a long and enduring history not only in the works of artists such as Jean-François Millet and Charles-François Daubigny, but also in France’s social history. An early peasant composition by Pearce was 'Porteuse D’eau (The Water-Carrier), ' for which he won a third-class medal at the 1883 Salon. In 1885 Pearce moved to Auvers-sur-Oise where he would remain the rest of his life and where he indulged his creativity by surrounding himself with nature. He exhibited 'Peines de Coeur (Troubles of the Heart)' at the Salon that same year, a painting that was also shown at the Pennsylvania Academy where it won the Temple Gold medal for best figure painting.

In the late 1880s Pearce continued his interest in peasant themes while also integrating pastoral paintings into his oeuvre. He remained a consistent yearly exhibitor at the Salon, in addition to participating in several international shows in Belgium, England, Germany, and America. 

The following years, beginning with his election to the jury of the Exposition Universelle of 1889, involved him in a number of ambitious activities which furthered his recognition, including chairing the Paris advisory committee for the World’ Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893 and the Paris Committee for the Louisiana purchase Exposition in St. Louis in 1904. More importantly, he helped organize the first large scale American art exhibition in Belgium for the 1894 Antwerp World’s Fair.  Even though Pearce adopted a style and subject matter preference that was typically French, it is clear that he was still interested in promoting the work of other American artists, especially those with a strong link to France. He was also named a Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur in 1894.

Pearce’s last Salon exhibition was in 1906 when he exhibited Jeune Picarde (Young Girl of Picardie).  He died in Auvers-sur-Oise in 1914."

(Excerpt from Reh's Gallery biography on Charles Sprague Pearce.)

Charles Sprague Pearce: Orientalism

"Fantasie" by Charles Sprague Pearce

"Charles Sprague Pearce’s interest in Orientalism and the exotic directed his attention towards the current rage of Japonisme, the love of everything Japanese that was spearheaded by shops such as Siegfried Bing’s on the Rue Chauchat, Madame Desoye’s La Porte Chinoise, and publications such as Le Japon Artistique.  More and more artists, such as Edouard Manet, James MacNeill Whistler, and Edgar Degas, began collecting oriental objects and challenging their use of spatial effects in order to simulate a kind of japanesque painting, replete with Japanese kimonos, fans, and porcelain in an often Europeanized setting. 'Femme à l’Éventail (Lady with a Fan)' of 1883 is an appropriate example of Pearce’s integration of oriental objects, showing a European woman dressed in her kimono, holding a Japanese fan. Furthering his allegiance to this interest, Pearce exhibited 'Fantaisie (Fantasie)' at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. The work was highly praised and attracted universal attention, garnering him a third class medal, and marking a turning point in Pearce’s career and a heightening of his artistic powers. 

Not easily satisfied, Pearce took on yet another theme: the peasant, a theme that had a long and enduring history not only in the works of artists such as Jean-François Millet and Charles-François Daubigny, but also in France’s social history. An early peasant composition by Pearce was 'Porteuse D’eau (The Water-Carrier),' for which he won a third-class medal at the 1883 Salon. In 1885 Pearce moved to Auvers-sur-Oise where he would remain the rest of his life and where he indulged his creativity by surrounding himself with nature. He exhibited 'Peines de Coeur (Troubles of the Heart)' at the Salon that same year, a painting that was also shown at the Pennsylvania Academy where it won the Temple Gold medal for best figure painting."

 (Excerpt from Reh's Gallery biography on Charles Sprague Pearce.)

Charles Sprague Pearce: Success Despite Illness

"The Beheading of John the Baptist"
by Charles Sprague Pearce

"Upon Charles Pearce Sprague's return to Paris, the hemorrhage which had before been such an obstacle to his ambition again became troublesome, and this time, as winter drew on, he had to betake himself to Algiers. For several succeeding years he followed a similar mode of life - working in Paris while the climate permitted and in the winter journey to Mentone, or Nice, or San Rafael, or some other southern sanitarium. He, besides, found it often impossible in Paris, even in quite mild weather, to stand the close atmosphere, the draughts and other physical inconveniences of the school, and, finally, he was obliged to confine his studies to his own studio, where M. Bonnat, a generous and warm-hearted man, visited him frequently to criticize and encourage.

Under all these difficulties, and while hampered by painful and alarming interruptions, Mr. Pearce soon managed to attract public notice to his work. It gained him a valuable commission which brought him to England to paint the portraits of Lord and Lady Harris. He received the 'Mention Honorable' of the Paris Salon for his 'Decapitation of St. John the Baptist,' in 1881. To this painting was also awarded the highest prize of the Pennsylvania Academy of Arts for the best figure painting in 1881 and was also purchased by the Chicago Art Institute [apparently 'now lost']. 

The work upon this picture was interrupted and delayed nearly a year by a recurrence of his malady, which exiled him from his studio. His family feel indebted for his life and his subsequent successes to the affectionate care and nursing during this period of illness of his friend and brother artist, E. H. Blashfield."

To be continued

("Prelude" by Charles Sprague Pearce. Excerpts from "Charles Sprague Pearce," an article from "The Art Amateur, Volume 10.)

Charles Sprague Pearce: A Winding Road

"Prelude" by Charles Sprague Pearce

"In the salon of this year two pictures by an American artist attracted universal attention. They were 'The Water Carrier' and 'The Prelude' by Charles Sprague Pearce, of Boston. It was the art in these pictures, the refined and poetic feelings, the solidity and earnest strength of the handling that drew the notice of French critics and American and English visitors alike. But it was not the learned way of handling color any more than the academic drawing or the well-known subjects that made the two paintings so very remarkable. It was their expressiveness - all those elements of skill and knowledge being used to a proper end, not displayed for themselves. 

The artist who has already achieved such a great success is now only thirty-two years of age. He was born in Boston, the grandson and namesake of the late Charles Sprague, a poet and great grandson of Samuel Sprague, one of Boston's Revolutionary Tea Party, a soldier under Washington at Trenton and Princeton.

Mr. Pearce's proclivities toward art were strongly marked at a very early age, and in the winter of 1872-73 he was sent to Paris for an education. While preparations were being made, however, he was seized with an alarming illness, and after a month's confinement had to go to Florida for the winter. He was not sufficiently strong to undertake the journey until the following August. His original intention was to study at Munich, but by the emphatic advice of his friend, the late William M. Hunt, he changed his mind and proceeded to Paris. There he at once entered the studio of M. Bonnat.

With the approach of winter came a recurrence of his trouble. Before he had been a month at work he was ordered by his physician to the south of France. There, however, he was in a measure compensated for the interruption in his studies by making the acquaintance of F. A. Bridgman, with whom he went in the winter of 1873 to the Nile. The two passed four months of boating life, sketching and gathering artistic material."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Charles Sprague Pearce," an article from "The Art Amateur, Volume 10.