Chapter 98 Vasari's "Biography of the Painter"

Vasari's "Biography of the Painter" European classical art, the essence of the Italian Renaissance era, in nearly 250 In ten years, Italy has produced many talented painters, sculptors and architects. Most of their works have been destroyed and disappeared today, and only a small part of them can be handed down. part. Introducing works on the study of Italian Renaissance art history, it can be said that there are many volumes.don't say yes For ordinary art lovers, even for a person who specializes in art history, it is too much to read. read.But among these countless works on the history of Italian Renaissance art, there is one book,

Almost everyone will inevitably mention it, or directly and indirectly use the materials in it. It is Huasari's "National Biography". Giorgio Vasari is an Italian, and the full title of his book should be "The Best of Italy" Lives of Distinguished Architects, Painters and Sculptors", but because the title is too long, generally They are all shortened to "Biography of the Painter" or "Biography of the Artist", or even just "according to Vasari". represent.Anyway, only one Huasari has been produced so far, and there is only one such work.

Misunderstood or mistaken. Vasari was born in 1511 and died in 1574.The age of his life is just The most glorious era of the Italian Renaissance.Most of the Renaissance masters, like him Contemporaries and friends, he was also a painter himself.He met Miguel Langelo, saw I have passed Raphael, I have seen Da Vinci, and I have also seen Di Shan.That's enough.In addition, nature has also seen Countless painters, sculptors and architects of his contemporaries, large and small, and their works, There are also their friends, relatives and children, as well as the aristocratic families and teachers who employ and support these artists.

Kings, bishops.Vasari suddenly became ambitious, to give these artists, whether they know it or not, see For those who have met or have not met, write a biography for each of them, recording their life and works, As well as the artistic characteristics, it is reserved for future generations as a reference.So I wrote this "Italian Most Outstanding Biographies of Architects, Painters and Sculptors". In this way, his "Biography of the Painter" has become a novel about Italian art in the Renaissance era. The most valuable work is simply a treasure house of knowledge in this field.Just imagine how many people have visited

After passing through Dishan's studio, come back and write down the impressions you saw?Several people have left records saying that he had kissed I saw the giant Michelangelo aligning a whole piece of marble in the carving room, and he was so heroic in handling the weight. spirit?How many people have seen the newly painted "Sistine Madonna" and "Mona Lisa"? Only Huasari has this vision, and all of them are recorded in his "Painter's Biography".because Therefore, this book has become a must-read work for those who study the history of Renaissance art.

Vasari is a disciple of Michael Langelo, so in his "Biography of the Painter", for his The teacher recorded it in great detail.However, people who read it in the future will be more particularly interested in his understanding of In the records of Da Vinci.Leonardo da Vinci died in 1519, when Vasari was just ten years old, Therefore, the record of Da Vinci's masterpiece "Mona Lisa" in his book has become the most precious. data of.Although not necessarily completely reliable, except in "The Painter's Biography", there is no other The place has such first-hand information.

Now anyone who introduces the painting "Mona Lisa" likes to say that Da Vinci made this woman I continued to paint the portrait for a total of four years, and I still think it has not been finished.And said that to make her smile, When painting, I specially invite someone to play music or tell jokes to her.These allusions are all from Huasa in the book.If there is no "Biography of the Painter", we will not know these interesting things at all. Whether these things are true or not, at least some people have said so at that time. More importantly, even if we have the opportunity to stand in the "Mont

Na Lisa, admire this masterpiece of Da Vinci with your own eyes, but it is five hundred years old It is an "ancient painting" of history, and the oil color has inevitably become dull.But in Huasari When I saw this painting by Da Vinci, its colors were completely different from the ones we see today. Sample.Let us try to see how Vasari recorded his impressions of this painting in his "Painter's Biography". impression: "Anyone who wants to see how far art can imitate nature may wish to go to Check out this portrait.Every advantage and every feature of the object is faithfully reproduced

Come.Those eyes are bright and full of moisture, but the surroundings around them are The reddish little circles, the depictions of eyelashes and eyebrows, which are seen in the eyes of living people, are all It is extremely realistic, as if every hair is drilled out of the skin, and the direction is different. There is a difference, even every oil bubble is faithfully shown.nose tip and beautiful tender red Nostrils, it seems easy to believe that this is alive.That mouth, the outline is worthy Envious, the shade is rosy, perfectly matching the light red cheeks of carnations, which look

It almost seems to be flesh and blood, rather than painted.Anyone who looks at the throat of the person in the painting Those who are too careful will feel as if they can see its pulse beating.This is the wonder of art trace. " This kind of "Mona Lisa" can only be seen by Huasari, and future generations will never see it again that's it.Moreover, if he hadn't written it down in the "Painter's Biography", who would know the reason? Is the "Mona Lisa" here? From this example alone, it can be seen that for those who study Italian Renaissance art,

This is such an important must-read. Vasari's Biography of the Painter, first published in 1550.Recorded in the first edition of "The Biography of the Painter" At that time, only one of the famous painters was still alive, and that was his teacher Miguel Langelo.early Although the edition of "The Biography of the Painter" is an unprecedented work, of course he is very conceited, but at the same time he is very arrogant. dissatisfied.Therefore, I have been collecting materials, supplementing and revising.It's been eighteen In 1568, a revised second edition of The Painter's Biography was published. The second edition of "Biography of the Painter" not only has a new look in content, but also expands in length. In addition to the original Miguel Langelo, several existing painters have also been described, which is equivalent to a New book rewritten.There are five volumes in total, and this is the original Huasari text we see today. Of course, this book has already been translated into many languages.In the English translation, 185 Mrs. Foster's translation published in zero year can be said to be the most standard and complete translation.later Although others have translated it again, but in terms of English translation, the most praised one is still the one hundred Mrs. Foster's translation of the year before. Except for Huasari's original text, most of the later editions added annotations and textual research, which is extremely important. important.These commentators and textualists based on Huasali's narrative, and then referred to other aspects Literature and material data, to be supplemented and corrected.But these textual research and notes, for specialized research Talents in Italian Renaissance art history are important, and most ordinary readers are not interested. In addition to annotations and textual research, there are also illustrations. For a work like "The Painter's Biography", Of course, it is also extremely important.When the second edition of Vasari's Biography of the Painter was published, it was already in A portrait was added before each biography, which was redrawn based on the painter's portrait circulated at that time The woodcuts were probably written by Huasari himself.A modern version of The Biography of the Painter, of course A large number of illustrations have been added, including photography of buildings and original paintings in color. Among the English translations, the best illustrated Biography of the Painter I have seen is One published by Medish Press, UK.This publishing house originally specialized in publishing reproductions of famous paintings Yes, of course, he is very familiar with collecting materials.But what is even more rare is that the format is large and the text is printed sparsely. Easy to read, the book is printed in twelve volumes.It's a pity that this is a deluxe version, the price is too high, not suitable for a General reader's purchase conditions. Huasari's book naturally has many mistakes, and he likes to use the morality of the time According to hearsay, it is regarded as the subject matter without examination.This is his shortcoming, but after nearly five hundred years From today's perspective, these shortcomings have become rare.Because, in addition to his "The Painter We cannot find another book as informative about Renaissance art as the Biography. treasure house.