Everything about The Putto totally explained
The
putto (pl.
putti) is a figure of a pudgy
human baby, almost always male, often naked and having wings, found especially in
Italian Renaissance art. The figure derives from Ancient art but was "rediscovered" in the early
Quattrocento. These images are frequently, and erroneously, confused with
cherubs.
Linguistics
Derivation of word
The word
putto is
Italian singular male; the plural is
putti. One never speaks of
putta, which would be the female version. (That word is short for
puttana, which means "
slut.")
In early modern Italian, the word simply meant "child"; today it's used only in this specific meaning.
In descriptions of art, some of the first known references to the word are in
Vasari (
Lives of the Artists, 1550/68).
Application of word over time
It seems to have developed its application as a specific term in
art history only during the modern period.
Visual History
Revival of putto in the Renaissance
Putti are a classical motif found primarily on child
sarcophagi of the 2nd century, where they're depicted fighting,
dancing, participating in
bacchic rites, playing
sports, etc.
The revival of the figure of the putto is generally attributed to
Donatello, in
Florence in the 1420s, although there are some earlier manifestations (for example the
tomb of
Illaria del Carretta in
Lucca).
Where to find putti
Putti,
cupids and
angels (see below) can be found in both
religious and
secular art from the 1420s in Italy, the turn of the 16th century in the
Netherlands and
Germany, the
Mannerist period and late
Renaissance in
France, and all over
Baroque ceilings. It would be too long to list all the artists, but the best known are
Donatello and
Raphael (with
Giulio Romano and
Giovanni da Udine), and all their followers.
They also experienced a major revival in the 19th century, where they ed over paintings from French academic painters, to
Gustave Doré’s illustrations to
Orlando Furioso, to advertisements.
In the twentieth century, they appeared in
Walt Disney's
Fantasia.
Iconography of putto
The iconography of putti is deliberately unfixed. It is hard to tell the difference between putti, cupids and angels. They have no specific attributes, but can take on the attributes of numerous other figures. As such, putti can take on lots of meanings.
Some of the more common ones are
- associations with Aphrodite, and so with romantic – or erotic – love
- associations with Heaven
- associations with peace, prosperity, mirth and leisure
Historiography
The
historiography of this subject matter is very short. Many important and famous art historians have commented on the importance of the figure of the putto in art but few have taken up a major study.
The only scholarly book with putti in the title is: Charles Dempsey
Inventing the Renaissance Putto (University of North Carolina Press, 2001).
Gallery
Image:Raffael 012.jpg|Triumph of Galatea (1511), by Raffael (Villa Farnesina, Rome)
Image:Satirello che ne masturba un altro - Roma, Museo di Villa Giulia, foto di Giovanni Dall'Orto - marzo 2005.jpg|Villa Giulia fresco (1555), (Villa Giulia, Rome)
Image:Peter Paul Rubens 117.jpg|Festival of Venus (c. 1635) by Peter Paul Rubens (Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna)
Image:Luca Giordano 013.jpg|Justice (1684-1686), fresco by Luca Giordano (Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, Florence)
Image:Orlando Furioso 12.jpg|Gustave Doré's illustration of Ludovico Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso (1877)
Image:William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905) - Return of Spring (1886).jpg|Return of Spring (1886), William-Adolphe Bouguereau
Image:San Domenico67.jpg|St. Thomas Writing on the Holy Sacrament (1662), Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (Basilica of Saint Dominic, Bologna)
Image:Bouguereau first kiss.jpg|Eros and Psyche (1873), William-Adolphe Bouguereau
Further Information
Get more info on 'Putto'.
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