The work exhibited at the National Gallery in London is the only one Parmigianino's large altarpiece in the UK collections. It will be the first exhibition dedicated to the painting since it was presented to the Gallery in 1826, two years after the museum was founded. As part of the Bicentenary celebrations, this exhibition once again presents this pre-eminent work to the public, highlighting its place in the development of XNUMXth-century central Italian painting and in the history of the National Gallery, London's collection.
The Madonna and Child with Saints was created by Parmigianino during his brief stay in Rome, where he worked from 1524 to 1527
It was supposed to decorate a chapel in the church of San Salvatore in Lauro dei Caccialupi, a family of well-known ecclesiastical officials. Depicting a Madonna and Child with Saints John the Baptist and Jerome at her feet, it was an important public commission for the young artist, but it would be the first and only one made in Rome. According to Giorgio Vasari, Parmigianino was working on this altarpiece in 1527 during the disastrous Sack of Rome. When Charles V's imperial troops burst into his studio, they were so amazed by what they saw that they allowed him to continue, demanding that he make drawings for them in exchange for leaving him unharmed. Parmigianino eventually fled Rome, never seeing his greatest achievement to date installed. The painting was hidden for safekeeping and was only recovered long after the artist's death, when it was transferred by the client's heirs to the family church in Città di Castello. I
Parmigianino was one of the most exemplary and prolific designers of the sixteenth century
The numerous preparatory drawings for the altarpiece that survive demonstrate his tireless creative dedication to the project. This focused exhibition brings together a selection of these with the painting for the first time. From atmospheric, velvety chalk studies to vibrant, swirling pen-and-ink sketches, it offers a unique opportunity to rediscover the painting from early conceptual ideas to meticulously refined final designs, illuminating the artist's dynamic visual thinking through elegant vibrancy of his line and craftsmanship across a variety of media. Originally from the city of Parma, in northern Italy, from which he took his name, Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola (1503‒-1540) was a child prodigy. The grace, ingenuity and refinement of execution already evident in his early works led him to be acclaimed as a "Raphael reborn". In 1524 he went to Rome, where he was introduced to Pope Clement VII with great success. He immersed himself in the art of Raphael and Michelangelo, as well as that of antiquity, all influences that inform the altarpiece. However, while artists such as Raphael were often admired for their naturalism, Parmigianino increasingly moved towards a more stylized method of representation. With a distinct combination of strange spatial organization, elongated figures, and unusual iconography, Parmigianino pushed the development of XNUMXth-century art in a new direction.
