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Various Landscapes. Title Sheet

Stefano della Bella

  • Various Landscapes. Title Sheet 2
Basic information
ID
Г-IV-1014
Author
Stefano della Bella
Name
Various Landscapes. Title Sheet
Date of creation
c.1643
Country
Italy
Technique
etching
Material
paper
Dimensions (height x width, cm)
11.8 x 25.8
Additionally
Type
graphic art
Genre
cityscape
Plot
City landscape
Provenance
Lviv Historical Museum
Information about author
Author
Stefano della Bella
Artist's lifetime
1610–1644
Country
Italy
Biography
Stefano della Bella (Italian: Stefano della Bella; 1610, Florence – 1664, ibid.). A prominent Italian artist, engraver and etcher of the Early Baroque period, Stefano della Bella was one of the most prolific European printmakers of the 17th century. Following the untimely death of his father, the youth began training in a goldsmith's workshop. Around 1623, he moved to the workshop of the engraver Orazio Vanni, where he mastered the basic techniques of printmaking. Later, he refined his etching technique in the workshop of Remigio Cantagallina – the mentor of the famous French master Jacques Callot. Copying Callot's works significantly influenced the formation of della Bella's own refined artistic style.
During this same period, the artist secured the patronage of the Medici family, who supported him throughout his life. In 1633–1639, funded by his primary patron, Prince Lorenzo de' Medici (uncle of Ferdinand de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany), the artist lived and studied in Rome. There, he immediately received major commissions and made numerous sketches of park ensembles, villas, palaces and ancient ruins, which he later incorporated into his engravings.In Rome, della Bella met the French printmakers Israel Henriet and François Langlois, thanks to whom he moved to Paris in 1639. In France, the artist quickly achieved immense popularity, establishing close and successful collaborations with them, as well as with the leading Parisian publisher Pierre Mariette. His etchings were in high demand among European collectors. In 1650, due to anti-Italian unrest in France (the Fronde), the engraver returned to his native Florence. During this late period, he significantly diversified his favourite themes, creating a series of hunting scenes, landscapes with Roman ruins and detailed depictions of horsemen.
Over his lifetime, Stefano della Bella created more than a thousand unique etchings and thousands of drawings. He worked across battle, landscape, animal, ornamental and genre scenes, capturing the events of his time with documentary precision – from the lavish theatrical pageants of the Florentine nobility to the harsh realities of the Thirty Years' War and the everyday street life of European cities. He became famous for his jewelry-fine, filigree-detailed miniature works.
Object description
Stefano della Bella executed a large number of rural landscapes series. They can be attributed to the fiction genre since the artist combined elements of various sketches. During his numerous trips, the master made drawings for his works. Stefano della Bella tried to reproduce his drawings' pen strokes or chalk texture in his etchings. These works comprise a series of 12 sheet engravings entitled "Diverses Paisages" ("Various Landscapes"), which were printed in Henriet Israel's publishing house around 1643. The engravings were dedicated to Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé. Because of his remarkable victory in the Battle of Rocroi, which he won in 1643, the figure of Louis II de Bourbon was extremely popular at that time. The engraving is the title sheet of the series. It depicts a monument with a statue of a military commander in Roman armour. It is most likely a figure of Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé. Nearby are the military trophies won in victory and Prince de Conde's coat of arms: three royal lilies on a shield. The lower tier of the monument is decorated with naked male and female figures lying. There are two inscriptions on the pedestal: "Diverses Paisages Mis en lumiere Par Israel Dedie A" above and "Mon-Seigneur et très-illustre Prince Louis de Bourbon Duc D'Anguien" below. On the right, an artist sits under a tree, making sketches. Behind the monument, a couple is walking along the park alley, followed by a small dog. A group of two men and a woman is resting beneath the canopy of trees. The engraving in the Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery's collection is mistakenly attributed to Silvestre Israel's authorship.
Inscriptions
Зліва печатка з написом: ZBIORY RYCIN KONOPKOW
Legal regulation
Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery

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