:Alessandro Vittoria and the Portrait Bust in Renaissance Venice: Remodelling Antiquity

Abstract

An examination of Alessandro Vittoria, which aims to provide an analysis of the chronology and style of Vittoria's portrait busts. Vittoria was one of the greatest sculptors of 16th-century Italy, and the greatest portraitist in Italian sculpture prior to Bernini. The book aims to both clarify the work of a major Renaissance artist and place it in context by explaining how Vittoria, who produced portraits modelled on ancient Roman busts, was responding to cultural and political forces which fostered a classicizing style in Venice. Special attention is devoted to Vittoria's patrons, many of whom were collectors of ancient art. Professor Martin demonstrates that, even more than Palladio's buildings, the portrait busts of Vittoria were the foremost expression of classicism in Renaissance Venice. This book is intended for art historians, Renaissance historians especially those interested in Venice and the revival of antiquity in the Renaissance, museum curators