Why the great Titian considered the "little dyer" his rival and other facts about Tintoretto

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The Italian painter Tintoretto has succeeded in creating grandiose, emotional and often deeply moving paintings and portraits of the Venetian aristocracy. His biography is full of legends and mysteries. Why did Tintoretto lead a modest lifestyle despite his immense wealth? Is it true that Titian - the greatest painter of Venice in the 16th century - saw him as a competitor? And also the story of how Tintoretto outwitted his rivals in a competition for painting a church.

His name means "little dyer"

Tintoretto's real name was Jacopo Robusti, but he is better known by his nickname, meaning "the little dyer." His father was a fabric dyer, which meant that his son grew up in a creative atmosphere, observing daily work with a wide palette of rich pigments. The influence of this early experience is evident in his later paintings, which are bright and luxuriously colored. In fact, the artist got his nickname from the Italian word for dyer (tintor).

Tintoretto's children followed in his footsteps

Tintoretto is known not only for his magnificent work, but also for his rather secluded lifestyle. The artist was only focused on his work and the well-being of his family. His daughter Marietta and sons Domenico and Marco followed in the footsteps of their famous father and became artists. Domenico eventually took over the direction of Tintoretto's large workshop, creating inspirational paintings in the manner of his father. Some of his works are mistakenly attributed to Tintoretto the Elder.

Tintoretto was inspired by Titian

Titian has always been a true teacher for Tintoretto. But here it is important to distinguish: Tintoretto's work by no means repeats the manner of Titian. Tintoretto's works are the foundations of Titian's art with an admixture of Tintoretto's fiery and emotional creativity. The result is a baroque effect that is the exact opposite of Titian's solid and stately manner. If Tintoretto's paintings at first glance are often striking in their drama, then upon closer examination they almost inevitably reveal peace and quiet.

Jacopo Tintoretto was the most prolific Venice painter in the late 16th century

From around 1539, Tintoretto began to work independently as an artist. His talent and hard work were appreciated. Tintoretto received many orders from churches, public organizations and the Venetian elite, worked on several altarpieces, portraits and mythological scenes. Subsequently, the efforts of Tintoretto made him the most prolific painter of the late 16th century.

Titian saw a competitor in Tintoretto and therefore kicked him out of the workshop

There is one curious legend according to which Tintoretto was expelled from the studio of the main artist of Venice, Titian. The latter allegedly took such measures so that the young Tintoretto did not become a competitor to him. However, Titian's precautions proved useless as Tintoretto began to independently study the works of the great Italian artists. And, as his art demonstrates, self-study has proven to be very beneficial. Titian, thanks to his status, even influenced competitions to exclude Tintoretto, and acted as an intermediary in favor of his protégé Veronese. So it was in 1560, when Veronese was appointed responsible for preparing the images of Plato and Aristotle for the San Marco library, and Tintoretto was banned from participating in the competition. But Tintoretto was not easily outsmarted. He found a weak point in Titian's work. The latter worked very slowly, forcing his patrons to spend lavish amounts of money in order to get an order from Titian himself. Tintoretto, on the other hand, worked quickly and asked his patrons to pay as much as they wanted, or nothing, which posed a serious threat to Titian's affairs.

The painting of the Scuola San Rocco school was his greatest triumph

In 1560, the school's fraternity held a competition to select an artist to paint the ceiling of one of the halls. Tintoretto, eager to be accepted into the fraternity, took part in the competition along with his colleague and rival Veronese. On the instructions of the commission, it was necessary to prepare sketches, based on the results of the consideration of which an artist will be selected, who will be assigned to paint the entire school. However, instead of completing only the sketches as required, Tintoretto prepared a complete painting and even installed it on the ceiling before presenting it to the judges. Tintoretto was well aware that the fraternity, which was created for charitable assistance, would not reject any charitable donation. When the commission began to consider the sketches of the participants, Tintoretto announced that he was presenting the painting to the school as a gift. As a result, despite the indignation of competitors, Tintoretto won, and his painting depicting St. Roch still adorns the school hall.

Unusually wealthy, Tintoretto lived incredibly modestly

Despite the impressive success he achieved in the art world, Tintoretto maintained a modest lifestyle. From the religious images of Tintoretto, it becomes clear that the master appreciated the life of simplicity and considered humility a great honor. For example, the depiction of Mary in a tiny dilapidated house in his Annunciation reflects the artist's admiration for poor and humble people. Although his brilliant works undoubtedly brought him a huge store of wealth, Tintoretto lived a modest life, never traveling or interfering in government affairs.

Tintoretto refused to pay for the most impressive project

At the age of 20, Tintoretto was commissioned to paint the Church of the Madonna del Orto. The artist painted the walls, organ and choir space with scenes from the Bible. The largest painting was the scene of the Last Judgment.

In it, the viewer's gaze extends to a multitude of chaotically located human bodies and angels, moving on to the neat and surprisingly minimalist figure of Christ. Two facts are noteworthy in this work. First, Tintoretto refused to pay for the painting, explaining that he creates it solely to enhance his artistic status. And second - in the same church, Tintoretto was later buried.

Author: Jamila Kurdi