Zanino di pietro

Zanino di Pietro was the leading painter of the early Venetian quattrocento along with Jacobello del Fiore and Nicolo di Pietro , however, the name of this artist has a rather complicated history of research and speculation, as is often the case in art history, when there is a lack of accurate archival data.

His name first appears in 1389 in the documents of Bologna, and then, around 1405, in the signature on the triptych from Rieti: HOC OPUS DIPINXIT ZANINI PETRI HABITATOR VE [N] EXIIS I [N] C [ON] TRATA SA [NC] TE APOLLI [N] ARIS (the work was written by Zanini, son of Peter, resident of Venice from the parish of St. Apollinaria). The stylistic features of the triptych testify to the strong influence of Nicolo di Pietro and the outstanding master of international Gothic Gentile da Fabriano .

In the middle of the 20th century, the Italian art historian F. Dzieri drew attention to the fact that in the Veneto region a number of works have been preserved, executed in this manner, among them the “Madonna and Child on the Throne” signed by another author (Rome, National Museum of the Palazzo Venice ) At the bottom of this picture there is a cartouche on which the date of September 20, 1429 and the signature “Johannes from France wrote” (JOH [ANN] ES DE FRANCIA PINXIT) are marked in Gothic type. Everything indicated that these were two different authors who worked in a similar manner, so dozens of stylistically close works performed in Veneto at the beginning of the 15th century were for a long time divided between the “Italian” Zanino di Pietro and the Frenchman Jean de France.

In 1985, the Italian researcher Serena Padovani published a work in which she suggested, and provided quite convincing evidence that this is the same master of French origin, who worked in Venice and Bologna, but signed her works in different ways (it. Dzanino - a form named after Giovannino (Giovannino), which is an Italian version of the biblical name John (Johannes), and in French sounds like Jean). The hypothesis of Serena Padovani was generally accepted by the art history community, so in the museum and exhibition catalogs under the works of Zanino di Pietro they immediately began to write three names at once: "Zanino di Pietro / Giovanni de France / Giovanni Charlier."

All archival data on two painters were brought together. As a result, a picture of the vast geography of the artist's work and some facts of his biography were highlighted. In fact, his name was Jean Charlier, he was the son of Pierre Charlier. The exact date of his birth is not known. In Venice, he was first mentioned in the will of his wife from 1405, from which it follows that Zanino was married to Franceskin, the daughter of the painter and miniaturist Marco Cortese. In the document, he appears as Johannis qm Petri de Francia (Johannes, son of the deceased Peter from France) and is named a resident of the parish of St. Apollinaris, that is, in 1405 the artist had a Venetian registration and a workshop. Based on these data, the researchers suggested that Zanino could have been born around 1380.

In all likelihood, he worked for some time with Nicolo di Pietro, since the influence of the latter can be traced in most of the works of Zanino. From 1389 to 1406, “Zanino the son of the deceased Pietro” was noted in the documents of Bologna, that is, the early period of his work is associated with this city.

In 1407, his son Francesco was born, which follows from a will made by the artist on April 19, 1408. Further, his name appears several times in connection with court cases, where he was called as a witness (in 1408, and twice in 1410). From a document dated May 6, 1412, it follows that Johannes de Petri, the “artist of the parish of Sant Apollinare,” sold a Tatar slave. Between 1412 and 1426 his name is not in the Venetian documents; it is likely that at that time he worked in some other cities.

March 16, 1426 “Zuan from France” (Zuan is another version of the name Giovanni, that is John) receives a fee for gilding and painting the pulpit in the Venetian church della Carita. In 1429, he puts his signature on the painting "Madonna and Child on the Throne" (now in the Palazzo Venezia Museum, Rome). On September 15, 1431, the Venetian patrician and wealthy entrepreneur Marino Contarini instructed the artist to decorate the façade of Ca d'Oro with paintings and gilding (the work was not preserved). In 1432, Zanino concludes a new agreement with Contarini on the creation of decorative ornaments in Ca d'Oro. In the years 1435-36 he was busy decorating the tomb of the Blessed Pacifico in the Venetian church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari. In a notarial act of March 3, 1448, he is already mentioned as deceased, moreover, with the surname "Charlier" (his son Francesco also bore this surname). The whereabouts of the painter from 1436 to 1448 is unknown.

Despite the harmony of the hypothesis of Serena Padovani, she also has opponents who note that even in the two works signed by the artist, there is a stylistic difference, which can be not only the result of creative evolution. In this regard, the figure of Zanino di Pietro and the circle of his works remain rather vague, not having a clear outline.

Zanino di Pietro remained in the history of art as an attentive, cautious and pedantic interpreter of international Gothic. The Gothic tradition in Venetian painting, begun at the end of the 14th century by such masters as Lorenzo Veneziano and Nicolo di Pietro , underwent a significant renewal at the beginning of the 15th century after the outstanding Gothic master Gentile da Fabriano arrived in Venice in 1408 and performed a number of works there. In 1410, another outstanding master of international Gothic, Michelino da Bezzo, worked in Venice. The new, aristocratic-refined manner of painting made a strong impression on the local masters, and for some time became a role model. Zanino di Pietro was just the artist who created his variations based on these patterns; he promoted this new Gothic reading of religious subjects in all cities and towns where he worked: in Bologna, Venice, Istria, on the Marche coast, in Puglia and other southern regions of Italy.

Zanino di Pietro was engaged exclusively in religious painting; he painted triptychs and polyptychs for church altars, worked in the mural technique, studied book miniatures and created many images for making home prayers (mostly these are images of the “Madonna and Child” performed in the popular form of the “ Madonna of Humility ” at that time). More than sixty works have been preserved, which, one way or another, are associated with the name Zanino di Pietro. Indisputable among them are only those two that have the signature of the author:

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  Triptych from Rieti, left wing. OK. 1410, Rieti, City Museum

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  Triptych from Rieti, the central panel "Crucifixion". OK. 1410, Rieti, City Museum

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  Triptych from Rieti, right wing. OK. 1410, Rieti, City Museum

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  Triptych from Rieti, the flip side of the wings. OK. 1410, Rieti, City Museum

• 1. "Triptych from Rieti." It was written for the Franciscan sanctuary in Fontecolombo around 1410. The scene of the Crucifixion is depicted on the central panel (98.5 X 88.5 cm), on the left and right wings (94 X 44 cm each) - kneeling figures of Franciscan saints: Elizabeth of Hungary Clara and St. Francis / St. Louis of Toulouse, St. Anthony of Padua and the blessed Gerardo Mekatti of Villamagni. On the flip side, four scenes from the history of the Franciscans, taken from the book of St. Bonaventure da Bagnoregio. Now stored in the City Museum, Rieti.
• 2. “Madonna and child on the throne” (104 X 51 cm). It has a signature and date - 1429. It was probably once the central panel of a more complex altar structure - a triptych or polyptych, the rest of which are unknown. It is stored in the National Museum of the Palazzo Venice, Rome.

All other works of Zanino have no indisputable attribution. In the course of the research, various experts attributed them to various authors who worked in a similar manner. Among these works, the attribution of three polyptychs to the artist does not cause serious criticism of specialists:

• 1 “Crucifixion with the Saints” (c. 1410, Avignon, Museum of the Petit Palais). On the central panel is the scene of the “Crucifixion” with the Virgin, Mary Magdalene, John, angels and a pelican feeding the chicks with their blood; on the side panels: st. Peter, John the Baptist, St. Jerome and Elizabeth of Jerusalem (?).
• 2 “The Incredulity of Thomas with the Saints” (1400s, Mombaroccio, City Pinacoteca). In the central panel, “The Incredulity of Thomas,” on the side panels: Archangel Michael, unknown saint, sv. Peter and St. Anthony Abbot.
• 3 “Polyptych of the Three Saints” is the remains of a disassembled polyptych, with images of three saints: Nicholas of Bari, St. Andrew and St. Lucia. He was previously in the church in Valkarecce dei Chingoli, now in the County Museum, Camerino.

In relation to many of the works attributed to Dzanino, there are discrepancies and doubts about the fact that, remaining, at first glance, in line with his style, there are few points of contact with his signed works. However, for various external signs, they are credited to the master’s catalog. Among them there are works on gospel stories and many “Madonnas with the Baby”, some of which reveal the following patterns of Gentile da Fabriano.

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  Madonna and Child. Private collection.

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  Madonna of Humility. The Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

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  Madonna of Humility and two angels. Private collection.

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  Madonna Humility with a donor and angels. Private collection.

• L. Coletti, Pittura veneta del Quattrocento, Novara 1953, p. XVI
• F. Zeri, Catal. del Gabinetto fotografico naz., I dipinti del Museo di palazzo Venezia in Roma, Roma 1955, p. 6
• G. Fogolari, La Gall. "Giorgio Franchetti" alla Ca 'd'Oro di Venezia, Roma 1956, p. 7
• R. Pallucchini, La pitt. veneta del '400, dispense a cura di MA Novelli, Bologna 1956, pp. 114–116
• B. Berenson, Italian pictures of the Renaissance. Venetian school, London 1957, I, p. 88
• G. Mariacher, Il Museo Correr di Venezia, I, Venezia 1957, p. 172
• F. Zeri, Aggiunte a Zanino di Pietro, in Paragone, XIII (1962), 153, pp. 59 s.
• I. Chiappini di Sorio, Docc. per Cristoforo Cortese, in Arte veneta, XVII (1963), pp. 156–158
• M. D'Elia, Mostra dell'arte in Puglia ... (catal.), Bari 1964, pp. 54–57
• R. Pallucchini, I Veneti alla mostra dell'arte in Puglia, in Arte veneta, XVIII (1964), p. 214
• MS Calò, La pittura del Cinquecento e del primo Seicento in terra di Bari, Bari 1969, pp. 145, 158 s., 211
• P. Zampetti, A Dictionary of Venetian Painters, I, Leigh-on-Sea 1969, pp. 54 s.
• C. Huter, Gentile da Fabriano and the Madonna of Humility, in Arte veneta, XXIV (1970), p. 28, 34 n. 6
• L. Dania, in Pittura nel Maceratese dal Duecento al tardo Gotico (catal.), Macerata 1971, pp. 125–127
• S. Padovani, Materiale per lastoria della pittura ferrarese nel primo Quattrocento, in Antichità viva, XIII (1974), p. 8 ss., 17 ss. n 26-32
• S. Padovani, Pittori della corte estense nel primo quattrocento, in Paragone, XXVI (1975), pp. 25–53
• S. Padovani, Nuove personi della pittura emiliana nel primo Quattrocento, in Paragone, XXVII (1976), 317-319, p. 42
• M. Lucco, Di un affresco padovano del Maestro di Roncaiette, in Arte veneta, XXXI (1977), pp. 173–175
• M. Natale, Musée d'art et d'histoire. Peintures italiennes du XIVe au XVIIIe siècle, Genève 1979, pp. 58-60.
• S. Padovani, Una nuova proposta per Zanino di Pietro, Paragone 419-421-423, Firenze, 1985, str. 73-81.
• P. Zampetti, Pittura nelle Marche, I, Firenze 1988, pp. 266–391
• I. Millesimi, Il Museo Civico di Rieti, Rieti 1993, pp. 54 - 60 n. 3, (tavv. 3, 3a - 3d)
• S. Zanon, Documenti d'archivio su Zanino di Pietro, Arte veneta 48, 1996, pp. 108–117
• Venice, Art and Architecture. Ed. By Giandomenico Romanelli, vol. I, Konemann, 1997, p. 201
• A.De Marchi, Gentile da Fabriano, Milano, 2006, pp. 70–73, 100-102.
• C. Guarnieri, Zanino di Pietro, in "Gentile da Fabriano e l'altro Rinascimento", cat. della mostra, Fabriano 21 aprile - 23 luglio 2006, 2005, pp. 162-165;
• M. De Simone L. Saulli, Guida al Museo Civico di Rieti. Sezione Storico - Artistica, Roma 2011, pp. 12-23

1. ↑ RKDartists
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