Pagina-afbeeldingen
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In the beginning of the eleventh century, the celebrated dome of Pifa was built, under the direction of Bufchetto a Greek architect; and his ftyle of building was foon imitated in Florence and other towns of Italy. The ancient statues and paintings were ftill buried with the other ruins of Roman grandeur; and the Greeks of Conftantinople continued to be the only mafters of the modern Italians, till Florence, in the thirteenth century, produced Giovanni Cimabue, who made great improvements in the art of painting, and is faid, by Vafari and other writers, to have far furpaffed his Grecian models. G. Cimabue is commonly reckoned the father of modern painting. This, however, can only be understood of his great improvements in the art; for painting was never entirely abandoned in the great cities of Italy during the thickeft darkness of the middle ages. Even in Britain, the art of defign was practised with fome degree of success, amidst the barbarism of the eighth century; as a pears by a drawing prefixed to a treatise of Virginity in the Saxon language, preferved in the Lambeth library

In the middle ages, the monks frequently employed their leifure in ornamenting the ancient manufcripts which they thought particularly valuable. Some of thefe are adorned with fo much care, that the labour beftowed on them must have confumed many years.

The ftyle of the Florentine painters, who fucceeded Cimabue, was, in general, hard, dry, and taftelefs. At length Lionardo da Vinci appeared, poffeffed of a genius fo acute, penetrating, and univerfal, that if the merit afcribed to him were lefs clearly authenticated, we should be difpofed to rank him with those fabulous heroes, whofe accomplishments and exploits have been invented by poets and orators to flatter the vanity of their countrymen. Lionardo was born in the year 1443, and died in 1518. Nature formed his perfon, which united the perfection of trength and beauty, to excel in all the fashionable exercises of the age. His talents were equally fuited to active and to contemplative life. While he practifed with fingular fuccefs all. the liberal arts, he ftudied and improved every fcience that is yfeful to man. Painting was his favourite purfuit; and managed by his fkilful hand, that art fpeedily affumed a new ap pearance. He was the firft who animated his figures, gave Strength of fhade in his oil pictures, and enriched them with expreffon.

Mr. Rogers cites authorities to prove that the manufcript was written in the eighth century; and feems not to think it neceffary to offer any other evidence of the antiquity of the drawing prefixed to it. But it is not abfolutely certain that the drawing is coeval with the writing.

After

After the time of Lionardi da Vinci, painting feems to have foon attained the highest perfection to which it was capable of arriving. For as ancient Rome was peculiarly happy in having. three kings who poffeffed the qualities beft adapted for laying the foundations of a great empire, fo modern Rome enjoyed three artists, whofe early discoveries have fecured to her that honourable empire of taste and elegance, which she still maintains unrivalled. From Lionardo da Vinci fhe acquired expreffion and colouring; from Michel Angelo invention, drawing, greatnefs, and the fublime; and from Raphael, all these united in the highest perfection, with the noble additions of compofition and grace. Raphael was born in 1483, and died in 1520; and notwithstanding what is faid of the tints of Titian, the happy pencil of Annibal Carracci, the graceful airs of Correggio, and the angelic beauty of Guido, it may be affirmed, that nothing effential was added to the art of painting after the age of Raphael.

In that age the art of engraving was also much improved by the admirable fkill of Mark Antonio, who appears to have been fo highly delighted with the finished productions of his contemporaries, that he conceived the noble idea of configning them to immortality. About the fame time a new art was dif covered, which imitated, with great exactness, such of their works as were only drawn with the pen.

This invention, called Chiari-fcuri by the Italians, and Camayeux by the French, is commonly afcribed to Ugo da Carpi, a man of great ingenuity. He made his first trial with two pieces of pear-tree or box, the most proper woods for his purpose. With one of these pieces he ftamped the outlines of his figures, and the darkeft fhadows; with the fecond he gave the wash; and those parts of the paper were left white, which required to have the appearance of being heightened. Having fucceeded in this contrivance beyond his expectation, he began to make prints with three blocks of wood. The first gave the profiles and dark fhadows; the fecond the middle tints; the third the light grounds; and the heightenings were expreffed as before by the natural colour of the paper. In this manner he executed a large print of Eneas carrying Anchifes on his fhoulders from the flames of Troy, bearing date 1518.

The inventions of Ugo da Carpi were highly efteemed by his countrymen. He was defirous of availing himself of the profit arifing from his labours, and, in order to prevent others from fharing it, obtained decrees of excommunication from the Pope, and menaces of fevere penalties from the Doge of Venice, against every one who fhould print his Æneas, without his own confent. Albert Durer had already obtained from the Emperor Maximilian denunciations of confifcation, accompanied with

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other

other threats, against every person who should copy or vend his works in the Emperor's dominions.

Mazuoli of Parma, called Parmigiano, who, if not the inventor of etching in aqua fortis, at least made great improvements in that art, began to imitate the prints of Ugo da Carpi in 1529. While Parmigiano refided at Bologna, he printed on a large fheet, a chiaro fcuro of Diogenes, which is the best work of the kind that had been hitherto executed. He greatly improved the art by difcovering a method of enabling the prints to bear a nearer infpection, and of rendering them more pleafing to the fpectator. This was done by printing two tints with wood on the outlines, while the more delicate fhades were etched on copper. Of this he gave an admirable example in a copy of a drawing of Raphael, which reprefents Peter and John healing the lame man at the beautiful gate of the temple. This work is the more interesting, being Raphael's first thought for the Cartoon on that subject.

The art, which Parmigiano learned from Ugo da Carpi, he communicated to Antonio da Trento, who, among a variety of other works, executed a famous print of the martyrdom of St. Peter and St. Paul, Antonio difcovered great ingenuity in working with two, and even with three blocks; but his treachery and ingratitude blafted all the hopes that might reafonably have been formed from the continuance of his labours. While his mafter refided at Bologna, and was affiduously employed in painting for the noblemen of that city, Antonio one morning feized the opportunity to rifle his cheft, ftole all his drawings, as well as his prints in copper and wood, and having efcaped through the gates of the city, was never heard of more.

These artifts were fucceeded by Meccarino of Sienna, and Antonio Cremonefe; but the perfon who has most enriched our collections with prints in imitation of drawings, is Andreani of Mantoua. He wrought with two, three, and even four blocks; and has left a greater number of prints, copied after a greater variety of mafters, than any of his predeceffors. Soon after the death of Andreani, Bartolomeo Coriolano practifed the fame art with great tafte and accuracy at Bologna. He chiefly employed himself on the works of Guido, his favourite painter; and fucceeded fo well in his imitation, that on prefenting to Pope Urban VIII a Madonna of this artist, he was dignified with the order of knighthood of Loretto, and obtained a confiderable falary.

The Germans are fond of contefting with the Italians the merit of many ingenious inventions. As to the art of which Mr. R. traces the hiftory, Sandrart of Stockau accufes Vasari of appropriating a difcovery, which of right belongs to the Germans, who he fays, as early as the year 1503, published chiaro

scuro

fcuro prints in black, yellow, and green. Although the Germans fhould be allowed the honour of the invention, the merit of the improvement will still belong to the Italians; for even Albert Durer, the greatest genius of Germany, did not exhibit any thing in this way, executed with three blocks, till the year 1600; at which time Goltzius the engraver alfo published feveral prints with three blocks, particularly one of Hercules killing the robber Cacus in his den. Paul Moreelfe, a painter of Delft, engraved on three blocks in 1612, and even the great Rubens directed a chiaro-fcuro block to be cut for a print graved on copper by Witdouc in 1638, reprefenting Jefus fitting at table with two of his difciples. L. Bufinck graved prints after P. Lalliman, on two and three blocks, about the year 1645; and many others of lefs note, who, from an excess of modefty, fuppreffed their names.

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From this time till the reign of George I. of England, the art, inftead of receiving any further improvements, began gradually to decline; except that in 1681 James Lutma published in Holland four portraits imitating black lead drawings ftumped, which, as he defcribes the operation, were made opere mallei, by means of a hammer. But after this last effort, made by James Lutma, to preserve a decaying art, it was allowed to linger and perifh. So entirely was it neglected and forgotten, that some of its revivers, at the period above mentioned, fpeak of it as a new invention; and Zanetti, a gentleman of Venice, who, between the years 1720 and 1741, publifhed many prints in imitation of drawings, obferves in a letter, that they were engraved on wood in the method of Trento, fince loft. The fame obfervation is repeated at the bottom of one of his prints, dedicated to William Duke of Devonshire. Zanetti took particular delight in copying the works of Parmigiano; and his enthusiasm for this master, together with the esteem in which his imitations were held in England, encouraged him to continue the practice of an art which he confidered as equally tedious and troublesome*.

About the fame time Le Blon published in England a treatise on the Harmony of Colouring in Painting." This work, which was dedicated to Robert Walpole, Efq; Chancellor of the Exchequer, laid open an extenfive plan, which was no lefs than to publifh portraits of the fize of life, as well as hiftorypieces, after great masters; all in the fame colours with the originals. This he fuccefsfully effected, by means of three mezzotinto plates, on which he skilfully blended yellow, red, and blue, which he terms the three primitive colours. His contrivance was followed by feveral of his pupils, particularly

* Lettere fulla Pittura,

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by

Loper and Game of Fans. The former chidy applied * mize Urojecte aitters, and the latter to reprefent 412-30 preparations. Durg the lane reign Edward Kirkwal II imitation of highly finished

Sang ecara tree nutimes on copper-plate, he Juans he figure: v zemu work, covered with an even val in news c i power the which was perforated in those parus in which it was intender that the print fould be heightETEL: and the pen the miler dit, aut inelegantly, amite de turck DUDY I nau or finified frawings.

£ maguirem saleñor of mins, copied after the beft pille au teavings in France was purched at Paris in 11S MURDE WOL, wel known by the name of its putros Mts Cret the charp-icuri was perimed, as ufual, wis Blocks; put, bellus 25, a metat té imitating penCrew DES WILL copper-quates VA VEL, which had not been priétés face the Lite of Parmigiano; a method of the greater vilke, as the operations of a fine per may be copied by etchings, with far more precision and reinstinct, this by any incifure in word.

Mr. Drephen Slaughter published in Leodor in 17:3, a print after an original drawing of Parmain. In this print the wash is given with a wooden block, and the Egures are etched in copper; and to the approbation which it on Yerially met with, is owing the beautiful collection of Pond and Knapton, the largeft and most elegant work of the kind ever publihed in England; in which the beauty of Slaughter's print is equalled, and the province of the art itfelf extended, by introducing a great variety of new fhades, and by imitating drawings in red chalk, which had never been before attempted.

Mr. Rogers concludes his Appendix by an account of the works of the ingenious artifts during the prefent reign (many of them now alive), who have cultivated or improved the methods of imitating drawings. As this part is written more enneifely than the reft, we intended to take the liberty of tranferibing it for the entertainment of our readers; but the article is already extended beyond our ufual limits.

In treating the lives of the painters, Mr. Rogers is more Expions than any writer in the English language. He mentions feveral interefting particulars that are omitted by Vasari, Philibien, and others; and his life of Correggio in particular is more perfect than any we have met with. He gives an agreeable Variety to his jubject, by introducing fuch epifodes as are naturally connected with the ornamental arts; of which there is an example in the lite of Stephano della Bella, where the reader will find an explanation of the origin of masquerades, triumphs, carnival fongs, and other entertainments, which formed the

principal

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