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A Trip in Mantova with Candida Höfer

 

Candida Höfer (Eberswalde, Germany, 1944), one of the most famous photographers in the world, will exhibit some of her works at Palazzo Te in Mantua (from March,15 to June,1). Her photos, depicting some historical places of Mantua with the typical absence of humans and a meticulous attention to decorative details, give us an opportunity to recall one of the greatest masterpieces of Italian Mannerism: the frescoes of Giulio Romano in the Palazzo Te. The most well-known work inside the building is indeed the one captured by Höfer, that is the frescoes of the “House of Giants” (1525-35). The ceiling and walls, painted as a unit, represent “The ruin of the giants electrocuted by Jupiter and overwhelmed by the collapse of the mountains Pelion and Ossa, which tried to climb Olympus.”

 

The frescoes, designed by Giulio Romano, has been realized mainly by Rinaldo Mantua. Originally, a floor made of pebbles river was connected to the painted stones at the base of the wall thus increasing the illusory effect of the whole (a remaining fragment can be seen in the photo by Höfer). The Chamber of the Giants may be regarded as a complete work, a synthesis of painting and architecture, a world that begins and ends in itself. Even today, a special acoustic phenomenon allows the transmission of voice, amplified, from a corner of the room to the opposite one. The work can be considered, as well as a masterpiece of Mannerism, also a site-specific avant la lettre.

 

Hofer’s exhibition is also an opportunity to explore some of Mantua’s major works of ancient art. The Palazzo Ducale, for example, well represents the architectural and artistic fervor of the era of Gonzaga. It could be deemed as a summa of the Italian Renaissance, with works by Pisanello, Andrea Mantegna, Luciano Laurana, Luca Fancelli, Giulio Romano, G.B. Bertani, Antonio Maria Viani. The Teatro Scientifico is rather a jewel of Baroque theater architecture. It was built between 1767 and 1769 by the architect Antonio Galli Bibienas. The basilica of Santa Barbara, by architect GB Bertani, instead dates back to 1562 and 1572. With regards to this latter monument, it may be interesting to point up the large painting titled “The Martyrdom of Saint Barbara”, which appears in the background, above the altar, in one of the pictures by Candida Hofer. The author is Domenico Riccio, known as the Brusasorzi or Brusasorci (Verona, 1516 – Verona, 1567). One of the innovators of Verona’s painting of the sixteenth century, he is also to be considered a precursor of Paolo Veronese.

 

January 17, 2014