Download Research Paper on identity and signatures

Giovanni Bellini and the Creation of Venetian Identity
Brontë Hebdon
Art 320: David Amott
November 15th, 2012
Giovanni Bellini, The Doge Leonardo Loredan c. 1501
1
A Renaissance identity, individual and collective, was often based in humanist thought, particularly
on the collective Roman past as displayed in writings by Cicero and Horace. Humanist thought, and thus
humanist identity permeated through each city a little differently. In Florence, the humanist paradigm
thrived in the republican climate, whereas, in other duchies, humanism might not have precipitated
through every level of society. Venice at the end of the 15th century would have fallen under this second
category. Once the second largest republic next to Florence,1 Venice became increasingly under the rule
of a council of Doges. All social mobility became close to impossible and humanism as a whole never
reached beyond the newly founded aristocracy. This social change was written intrinsically into the
artistic culture of Venice, particularly in the work of Giovanni Bellini. He accurately articulates the
ways in which identity was created in relation to the city, the individual and the artist amid the social
changes occurring in early 16th century Venice. In Venetian portraiture, rarely if ever have all three
identities been visible in the same work, and even more rarely have they been analyzed. In the Portrait
of Doge Leonardo Loredan, these three identities are exhibited in a harmonious way and work together
to create a social background to the portrait that truthfully shows the social climate of Venice at the time
of Bellini.
Venice was a unique city for more than just its government and social construction. The city was
founded by people running from the chaos that ensued after the fall of Rome.2 Built seemingly on sheer
force of will, the city floats on a system of logs driven deep into the earth, which though difficult to
conceive, actually was the ideal location for a port city. Venice during the crusades, and the many
1
2
Laurie Adams, Italian Renaissance Art, (Boulder Laurence King Publishing, 200) 270-289.
Adams, Italian Renaissance Art, 270.
2
pilgrimages made into Italy throughout the middle ages and into the Renaissance, served as an excellent
harbor for bringing money into the country, especially through its grain and salt trade.3 That money
certainly helped facilitate the Renaissance as a whole but it did something perhaps more profound to
Venice itself; it forced them to focus on the East. The cross-cultural influences coming into the city from
the sea were particularly strongest with its biggest trade partner Byzantium.4 Thus the Venetian identity
was a highly unique mix of outside influences when compared to the other Italian city-states. It was a
city forging its own identity by looking outward for examples, rather than inward to Italy for an identity.
Bellini’s Doge formally shows the overpowering identity of the city specifically through the clothing
and demeanor of the Doge Loredan. Today these two formal qualities show how “the secular
government of Venice was the only Italian government system that could rival the church as a creator of
culture.”5 The government did play an active part in culture, particularly in the glorifying of the
Venetian state, sometimes at the cost of the individual.6 Traditionally, hierarchy of scale was employed
by artists to denote the relative importance of people in comparison to the city.7 The city would loom
large in the frame, whereas the figures themselves would be small. In this way, Venetian artists such as
the Bellinis communicated the importance of Venice in relation to the city’s inhabitants; a citizen was
obviously less important than the city in which he lived.8 In Loredan’s portrait, the city might not
physically be there, but formal clues allude to its presence. The Doge is wearing his ceremonial robes of
3
Gustav Pauli, Famous Art Cities Volume 2:Venice, (London: H. Grevel &Co., 1904), 6-105.
Pauli, Famous Art Cities, 6.
5
Pauli, Famous Art Cities, 102.
6
Pauli, Famous Art Cities, 105.
7
Laurie Adams, Italian Renaissance Art, (Boulder Laurence King Publishing, 200) 270-289.
8
Adams, Italian Renaissance Art, 278.
4
3
thick, ornate brocade with large metallic buttons as well as the corno with a linen cap underneath which
was a horn shaped ducal hat.9 These ducal robes would have been a symbol of Venetian government and
order, as well as an indicator of the wealth of the city. The portrait of Loredan becomes then, not a
portrait of a human being, but a secular image of the power and wealth of the state government. The
government had enough influence to rival even the church, and Bellini’s portrait makes that particularly
clear through his use of clothing.
Loredan’s demeanor and positioning is also indicative of the strain the Venetian identity was under
at the time Bellini painted Leonardo Loredan. For all intensive purposes, the Venetian identity was
under attack. Doge Tommaso Mocenigo had died in 1423 and left Venice in relative prosperity.10 The
population was flourishing and the economy was stable. However, the next Doge, Francesco Foscari,
unintentionally sounded the death toll for Venice. Venice had always been a territorially self-conscious
city.11 Its location placed the Venetian people neither on land, nor on water so the Venetian people were
constantly trying to solidify their position. This was done mostly through the acquisition of territories.
Thus, Doge Francesco Foscari’s decision to go to war with Milan was a natural way to stabilize his new
career as Doge. The unforeseen effects were disastrous. The city spent an unnecessary amount of money
on the unsuccessful war right as Byzantium fell to the Ottomans in 1453. They were suddenly without
any money for defense, and the buffer zone between them and the Ottoman Turks had just fallen. Their
sudden exposure to the Turks left them anxious to make allies with bigger powers than themselves,
9
Miranda Mowbray, Electing the Doges of Venice: a 13th century Protocol, (Bristol: Enterprise Systems
and Storage Laboratory, 2007), 1-15.
10
Gustav Pauli, Famous Art Cities Volume 2:Venice, (London: H. Grevel &Co., 1904), 6-105.
11
Pauli, Famous Art Cities, 12.
4
which led them to ally with the French in 1499 against Naples. Their anxiety proved to be the final
blow. They had aligned themselves too quickly with a power they did not fully understand. Their
alliance broke apart and they were defeated fully in 1509.12 The consequences of Doge Foscari’s actions
were dealt with during the rule of Doge Loredan from 1501-1521.13 Painted at the literal beginning of
his career as Doge, his expression communicates the need for reassurance; both for his people and for
himself. The Venetian people, who had no control or administrative insight into their government would
likely not have known the full extent of their situation and would have looked to Loredan for protection
and help. Loredan’s rod-straight back and powerful presence show Loredan as a figure who will fight
for Venice selflessly until the end. However, he is positioned behind what seems to be a wooden ledge,
which communicates a certain distance and separation. By separating the figure from the viewer, Bellini
reminds his viewers that they are not welcomed into the painting. This is directly transferrable to the
barrier that was the Doge system in Venice. Because no more familial names could gain access to the
Golden Book of the Council, a class system based on heredity created a barrier to social mobility and
was thus enforced.14 Additionally, the barrier communicates the knowledge that Loredan was privy to
what the people were not. There was a segregation of knowledge. Finally, the countenance of Loredan
seems at first glance to be smiling, but upon closer examination, the viewer realizes a smile has been
mistaken for a type of “resigned neutrality.”15 It communicates “the man’s subordination to ideals of
civic and religious harmony.”16 In this way, Bellini formally communicates how the identity of Venice
as a whole was vastly more important than the identity of its individual citizens.
12
Gustav Pauli, Famous Art Cities Volume 2:Venice, (London: H. Grevel &Co., 1904), 6-105.
Debra Pincus, “Venice and the Two Romes,” Artibus and Historiae,29, no.58, (2007), 101-114.
14
Laurie Adams, Italian Renaissance Art, (Boulder Laurence King Publishing, 200) 270-289.
15
Joanna Woods Marsden, Renaissance Self Portraiture, (London: Yale University Press, 1998), 117-119.
16
Adams, Italian Renaissance Art, 6.
13
5
Bellini does this by showing how Loredan has subordinated himself to his state. There is virtually
nothing personal about Loredan. His clothes were assigned to him by his city, his position in society was
assigned to him by his city and his very countenance was assigned to him by his city. This utter
submission to the state goes beyond mere civic humanism. However, this begs the question of why such
images of civic submission were necessary at all. Images like these were created to serve an essential
social purpose through the display of rank and status in a visual way which created a sense of
appearance that generated understanding.17 Through images like this, the public understood their own
relationship to the city as well as their relationship to their rulers which ensured the continuation of the
Doge aristocracy by perpetuating the notion of Roman Pietas. Pietas is the notion of esteeming the good
of the group, city or community above the good of the individual.18 The prime example of Roman pietas
is Aeneas in The Aeneid which was commissioned by Augustus as political propaganda in the early days
of Imperial Rome. This idea that pervaded ancient Roman society would have been available to the
Doges through Cicero and Virgil as propaganda for their city as well. Loredan’s portrait communicates
this pietas perfectly. He is not an individual, he is a servant to his state. The individuality of Venice thus
becomes more important than the individuality of the man and especially “Bellini’s presentation in these
works reflects the city’s political system in which the individual was subjugated to the class, and the
class to the needs of the state.”19
Pietas and civic submission are both certainly present in the frame, but what about Loredan himself?
Is this not a portrait? Bellini was the foremost portrait painter in Venice at the turn of the 16th century.20
17
Patricia Rubin, Images and Identity: 15th Century Florence, (London: Yale University Press, 2007), 3-
640.
18
Virgil, The Aeneid, (Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 2005), 1-340.
Joanna Woods Marsden, Renaissance Self Portraiture, (London: Yale University Press, 1998), 117-119.
20
Debra Pincus, “Venice and the Two Romes,” Artibus and Historiae, 29, no.58, (2007), 101-114.
19
6
His amount of work in this one area of painting led him to begin focusing on the moods of the inner
psyche in art. The idea that a portrait of the physical should create an image of the metaphysical self was
novel.21 We can see Loredan’s inner psychology particularly in his eyes. He gazes outward, not at the
viewer, but instead at something unseen and unknown. He seems almost lost in thought, as if he is
pondering the weight of the task placed upon him.
The simple fact is that very little is actually known about Doge Loredan. Little is known about his
personal life, and aside from the happenings of 1509, we know little about his term as Doge. In Venice,
but also late medieval Europe as a whole, identity was not as personal as we believe it to be today.
Identity was created through families. Indeed, “individual behavior was not divorced from corporate of
family roles. Moreover, it indicated how public and private realms, while distinct, were never really
separate.”22 In this way, you were not Giacomo, you were not Leonardo. You were a Loredan and thus
had certain ways of representation and action. This explains the mass amounts of effort taken to preserve
and protect a family name. For example, a coat of arms was a way of physically preserving a family
name. Doge Loredan was no exception to this creation of familial identity. In fact, during the political
difficulties of 1509 Venetians saw him as being overly soft and too concerned for the continuation and
safety of his family, rather than the city.23 He was criticized greatly for this, however, he was responding
in quite a natural way. If his family was destroyed, his identity was gone.
21
22
Gustav Pauli, Famous Art Cities Volume 2: Venice, (London: H. Grevel &Co., 1904), 6-105.
Patricia Rubin, Images and Identity: 15th Century Florence, (London: Yale University Press, 2007), 3-
640.
23
"Lorenzo Loredan Sculpture." Museum Planet, Boldfx Publishing, 1999. Web. Web. 18 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.museumplanet.com/tour.php/venice/gp/15>. #15
7
Loredan’s familial identity was constantly balancing with his Venetian identity. Leonardo as
“Loredan” and Leonardo as “Venetian” were two separate beings attempting to work together as Doge.
The importance of his Venetian identity can be read easily in Bellini’s portrait. It was commissioned the
first year of Loredan’s term as Doge which indicates a certain need to please.24 Loredan needed to prove
to his city that he could be a good Doge and he does this formally by emphasizing his Venetian identity
over his familial identity. He wears the Doge’s robes and has the countenance of a stern leader.
However, the fact that Loredan protected his family over his city shows his individuality a bit more.
Individuality might not mean the same thing today as it did in 1509, however, Loredan’s dual identity as
“Venetian” and part of the Loredan family is understood through Bellini’s formal depiction as well as
the history behind the defeat of Venice in 1509. Indeed, “there was never born nor never died a man in
Venice.”25
In addition to the city’s identity and Loredan’s identity, a third identity is visible in The Portrait of
Leonardo Loredan in the paper cartellino on the center bottom. A cartellino was a small painted paper
with important information on it. In this case, the name Ioannes Bellinus [Giovanni Bellini] adorns the
paper. The signature is in Latin, but with uppercase Roman characters which is characteristic of Bellini’s
signature style.26 The second raised L has its roots in the “raised pedestal letter” which was common in
early imperial Rome.27 This cancelleresca corsiva28 style of cursive was adopted by the Carolingian
24
"The Myth of Venice."History Teachers Association of Victoria, n.d. Web. 18 Nov 2012.
<http://www.htav.asn.au/sitebuilder/students/knowledge/asset/files/17/renaissanceitaly_themythofvenice_sbell.pdf>.
25
“The Myth of Venice.”
26
Louisa C. Matthew, “The Painter’s Presence: Signatures in Venetian Renaissance Pictures,”Art Bulletin 80,
no.4, (1998), 616-629.
27
Debra Pincus, “Giovanni Bellini's Humanist Signature,” Artibus and Historiae, 29, no.58, (2008)92-95,
28
Pincus, “Giovanni Bellini’s Humanist Signature,”99.
8
dynasties and eventually became popular among Italian humanists in the 15th century. The letters are
evenly spaced and a small triangle is noticeable at the end of the last ‘s’ which is another identifier of a
Bellini signature. Normally, signatures as a methodological device have been overlooked due to their
lack of metaphysical background.29 However, Venetian signatures can prove the exception because of
the amount that was produced and their standardization.30 The amount of signatures in Venice can be
explained through their relationship with other trading cities. Just as most of their goods for survival
came from the outside, they exported many goods which precipitated the return of goods and ideas to
them.31 For example, the implementation of oil painting in Venice directly resulted from trading and
interacting with the North.32 Venice as a port city also explains the standardization of the signature
which can be attributed to the rise in competition.33
An artist had a unique identity in the renaissance paradigm. Like Loredan, an artist had the identity
of his state as well as his familial identity, however, his craft was a third identity. Hovering somewhere
between artist and artisan, an artist had an occupational identity that could have just as much impact in
determining reception in society as familial and citizen identity. Bellini shows his artistic identity in his
signature by being one of the most prolific and consistent signers of the Renaissance. Indeed, “Bellini’s
workshop standardized its form of signature which helped market its reputation.”34 Additionally, as the
29
Gilbert Creighton, "A Preface to Signatures (with some cases in Venice)," in Fashioning Renaissance
Identities, ed. Mary Rogers (Cambridge: University Press, 2000), 79-84.
30
. Louisa C. Matthew, “The Painter’s Presence: Signatures in Venetian Renaissance Pictures,”Art Bulletin
80, no.4, (1998), 616-629.
31
Matthew, “The Painter’s Presence,” 620.
32
Laurie Adams, Italian Renaissance Art, (Boulder Laurence King Publishing, 200) 270-289.
33
Matthew, “The Painter’s Presence,”627.
34
Matthew, “The Painter’s Presence,” 620.
9
best painter in Venice, Bellini’s workshop would have needed a way to both authenticate and guarantee
his work, especially to clients abroad. In this way, his signature became his brand, which was widely
recognized and mutually respected. Perhaps this is the reason why Bellini’s signature rarely changed and
when it did, the changes were minute. A lack of date, the roman lettering and the small triangle at the
end became a universal symbol understood as Bellini’s work.35 In this way, the signature became his
identity.
The act of signing is, in itself, a declaration of identity.36 Renaissance artists were emerging from a
gothic tradition where the signature was a rare appendage to a work of art. Thoughts circulating as to
why this was the case seem to revolve around the idea of giving due reverence to God, however the
reality is that there is simply not enough works, signed or unsigned, to establish a viable reason. For
example, renaissance signatures as a whole were found most often on devotional works.37 The fact that
the Venetian signature became so standardized is direct evidence for the renaissance affirmation of
identity.
Aside from commercial motivation, Bellini had another reason to assert his identity into his works.
In his large workshop, his two students, Titian and Giorgione were rapidly gaining ground against him.
They were nipping at the heels of their master and Bellini recognized this. Understanding the fragility of
his monopoly on the Venetian art world, he asserted his identity even further. This was done by, as
Debra Pincus, “Giovanni Bellini's Humanist Signature,” Artibus and Historiae, 29, no.58, (2008)92-95,
Louisa C. Matthew, “The Painter’s Presence: Signatures in Venetian Renaissance Pictures,”Art Bulletin 80,
no.4, (1998), 616-629.
37
Patricia Rubin, "Signposts of Invention: Artist's Signatures in Italian Renaissance Art," Art History, 29, no. 4
(2006): 563-599.
35
36
10
mentioned above, the standardization of his signature, as well as his work towards being a progressive
artist. He was the first Venetian to work in oils when they came from the north in the 1470’s.38 He was
constantly changing and improving his individual style, especially in his landscapes.39 And he also
embraced new subject matter. For example, he painted his first nude when he was 90 years old.40
Through this constant progression, Bellini insured the continual superiority of his name and brand.
Albrect Dürer witnessed this when he said, “he is very old, but he is the best painter of them all.”41
A Renaissance identity was the product of many different influences. City, family and occupation
were the biggest identity creators in Venice and this unique blend created the Venetian atmosphere
necessary to facilitate the progression from Renaissance to Mannerism and beyond. Leonardo Loredan’s
portrait is unique because it perfectly portrays all three identities formally, and through its history. It is a
portrait of the state in that Loredan is wearing the countenance and clothes of his city, it is the portrait of
a man in that we understand his desire to please both his family and his city, and it is also a portrait of
the artist in that we see Bellini’s standard brand in his signature. This mix of city, self and brand was
unique only in Venice. It took just the right amount of republicanism and Doge power, along with the
familial identity, and sufficient exporting economic power requiring a standard label. Through
understanding the Portrait of Lorenzo Loredan, we come to better understand Venice and what it meant
to be living within its walls at the end of the 15th century.
38
Gustav Pauli, Famous Art Cities Volume 2:Venice, (London: H. Grevel &Co., 1904), 6-105.
Pauli, Famous Art Cities, 102.
40
Pauli, Famous Art Cities, 105.
41
"Giovanni Bellini Biography," artble.com (blog), 2012.
39
11
Bibliography
Adams, Laurie. Italian Renaissance Art. 1st Ed. 1. Boulder: Laurence King Publishing, 2001. 270289.
Burke, Jill. "Patronage and Identity in Renaissance Florence: the case of S. Maria a Lecceto." Trans.
Array Fashioning Identities in Renaissance Art. Mary Rogers. 1st Ed. Cambridge: University Press,
2000. 51-63. Print.
Coates, Victoria C. "Ut Vita Sculptura: Cellini’s Perseus and the Self Fashioning of Artistic
Identity." Trans. Array Fashioning Identities in Renaissance Art. Mary Rogers. 1st Ed. Cambridge:
University Press, 2000. 150-153. Print.
Creighton, Gilbert. “A Preface to signatures (with some cases in Venice)." Fashioning Renaissance
Identities. Edited by Mary Rogers. Cambridge: University Press, 2000.
Ketelaar, Eric. "The Genealogical Gaze: Family Identities and Family Archives in the Fourteenth to
Seventeenth Centuries." Libraries & the Cultural Record 44.1 (2009): 9-28. Project MUSE. Web. 1 Nov.
2012. <http://muse.jhu.edu/>.
Matthew, Louisa C. "The Painter’s Presence: Signatures in Venetian Renaissance Pictures." Art
Bulletin. 80.4 (1998): 616. Print.
Marsden, Joanna Woods. Renaissance Self Portraiture. London: Yale University Press, 1998.
Mowbray, Miranda. Electing the Doges of Venice: a 13th century Proticol. Bristol: Entreprise
Systems and Storage Laboratory, 2007.
Pauli, Gustav (1866-1938); Konody, Paul G.(1872-1933). Venice. Famous art cities ; no.2. London:
New York: H. Grevel, C. Scribner's sons, 1904.
12
Pincus, Debra. "Giovanni Bellini's Humanist Signature." Artibus and Historiae. 29. no. 58 (2008):
92-95.
Pincus, Debra. "Venice and the Two Romes." Artibus and Historiae. 13.26 (1992): 101-114. Web. 1
Nov. 2012.
Rubin, Patricia. Images and Identity: 15th Century Florence. 1st Ed. London: Yale University Press,
2007. 3-640. Print.
Patricia , Rubin. "Signposts of Invention: Artist's Signatures in Italian Renaissance Art." Art History.
29. no. 4 (2006): 563-599.
Rubin, Patricia. "‘What men saw’: Vasari’s Life of Leonardo and the image of the Renaissance
artist.” Art History. 13, pp. 34-46
Tinagli, Paola. "The Identity of the Prince: Cosimo de’Medici, Giorgio Vasari and the
Ragionamenti." Trans. Array Fashioning Identities in Renaissance Art. Mary Rogers. 1st Ed.
Cambridge: University Press, 2000. 190-200. Print.
Virgil, . The Aeneid. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 2005.
"Giovanni Bellini Biography." artble.com (blog),
"Lorenzo Loredan Sculpture." Museum Planet. Boldfx Publishing, 1999. Web. Web. 18 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.museumplanet.com/tour.php/venice/gp/15>.
"The Myth of Venice." . History Teachers Association of Victoria, n.d. Web. 18 Nov 2012.
<http://www.htav.asn.au/sitebuilder/students/knowledge/asset/files/17/renaissanceitaly_themythofvenice
_sbell.pdf>.
13