Antonio Mancini, Lorenzo Delleani and Fillippo Palizzi, who does not know these influential Italian painters? Apparently a lot of people don't. Don't feel guilty, even for many art historians the names don't ring a bell. This is in contrast to Caravaggio, Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli, Bernini and Titian. These artists need little introduction: Italian art, culture and identity are usually derived from their beautiful and famous works of art. To the international public, however, the late nineteenth century and its artists are relatively unknown. This is about to change.
With the new exhibition Sprezzatura - Fifty years of Italian painting (1860-1910) gives it Drents Museum An insight into this turbulent time from the perspective of Italian artists. A period of unity, ideals, but also turmoil. For this reason alone, the exhibition is worth visiting; admiring art from the period that was crucial for the identity and - fragile - unity of today's Italy.
Unity in the land and on the canvas
Unity is the key word of Sprezzatura. The literal unification of Italy in 1861. One art movement. A new collective identity. "Italy is made, now the Italians!" , said politician and painter Massimo d'Azeglio. An Italian unity in art. Creating cohesion on canvas and in the country by combining new styles and techniques with age-old traditions.
Unity can also be detected in the exhibition space of the Drents Museum itself. Although it spans fifty years and presents various themes and movements within it, the exhibition has and gives an organic feel. The sixty-nine works-most of which have never been exhibited outside Italy-appear beautifully on the various coloured walls. The arrangement reminds you of idyllic Italian houses with romantic arches. It gives you that summer holiday feeling.
Memories and creativity
The fresh colour palette of the romantic but untamable Italian countryside is a feast for the eyes. The paintings of Venice, by Giacomo Favretto and others, took my mind back to this magical Italian city: the balconies over the water, the countless bridges and the Doge's Palace. That is what is so great about good art; it stimulates the mind and sparks creativity. I was also charmed by two, in my opinion, 'soft' works by Tranquillo Cremona, Attraction and Motherly love. The theme-love-spattered off the canvas. Both through the subtle colours and the expressions in the paintings
Unity was also present in the impressive triptychs. These works can be found at the end of the exhibition. In this case: the whole is more than the sum of its parts. From idealism and euphoria to divisionism and realism. You see the big picture. Still, I have to admit that I like some paintings, such as Contemplation of a starving person by Emilio Longoni, felt out of place, although this had more to do with the painting style than the theme. The addition of quotes from the painters and Italian music makes it Sprezzatura picture complete.
Essential part of Italian identity
Today, Italy is once again a land of internal contradictions. Differences are now celebrated, where in the late nineteenth century the emphasis was on creating a uniform Italian identity. Artists from diverse backgrounds have been brought together because they want to create an image of and for the new Italy. Giovanna Ginex ( curator and author) is right when she says that, to understand Italian identity as a whole, the period 1860-1910 is indispensable. This was the time when the country was united again for the first time since the fall of the fabled Roman Empire. It was a period when dreams of a new Italy became entangled with political developments, social unrest and disappointments. However tragic, it was a fertile time for wonderful works of art.
Unknown but therefore not insignificant
Many of the works in the exhibition are from museums I visited in Rome and Venice, but probably skipped for the works of -from the public's point of view- more famous names. For a good picture of a country, its art and cultural history and identity, you obviously have to consider all relevant periods and historical events. I am therefore glad that the Drents Museum offers the public the chance to look beyond their noses. Of course, you are never too old to learn and discover. By Sprezzatura I discovered an artist whose artworks I was very charmed by: Antonio Mancini.
Dutch connections
Mancini was 'a genius madman', according to Dutch painter Johan Jacobson. Antonio Mancini contacted Hendrik Willem Mesdag. The latter was not only a celebrated painter at the time, but also an avid art collector. Mancini asked Mesdag to support him and the latter agreed. During a fifteen-year patronage, Antonio Mancini sent Mesdag some thirty-two paintings. After seeing the six artworks in the Sprezzatura exhibition, I understand Mesdag's fascination with Mancini's art. Dark but rich colours that add an element of drama to the rendered scene. His style is an interesting combination of realism and modernism.
Also on show are three Dutch landscapes by Lorenzo Delleani: View of The Hague, Amsterdam and The Mill of Leiden. Although they are beautiful works, they do interrupt the 'La vita è bella' feeling I experience, walking through the exhibition. A kind of anachronism. Not in the chronology of time, but of mood and feeling.
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