Who is Antonio Canova? 10 things to know

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Who Is Antonio Canova? 10 Things to Know

Julie Warnement

Based on Canova: Clay Sketches

Antonio Canova

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Antonio Canova

One of the greatest sculptors of the Napoleonic era

- Can breathe life into stones.

But how did he do it?

In his studio in Rome,

Kanova came up with the idea with clay,

It is then made into full size with marble.

These rough and quick-made expressive clay "sketches"

Demonstrates an important aspect of his creativity.

His creative designs and superb carvings drove the demand for marble sculpture throughout Europe.

The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., precedes the "Canoa: Clay Sketches" exhibition from June 11 to October 9,

Let's get to know the sculptor first.

Antonio Canova, The Wrestler

1775, terracotta, Accademia Gallery of Venice

1. Canova began sculpting at a young age.

Canova was born in 1757 in Bossagno, Italy. His father and grandfather were sculptors and stonemasons. Canova studied with a Venetian sculptor at the age of 11 and began studying at the Venice Academy of Fine Arts around the age of 17.

In 1775, one of his models won second place in a competition at the Academy when he was 18 years old.

Antonio Canova, Head of the Figure

c。 1780, terracotta, Dino and Raphael Tommaso

2. Canova left for Rome at the age of 21.

He carved from clay on his way to Rome. For example, he imitated the head of a young friar - but he lost this model when changing ships.

In Rome, Canova often visited the Academy of Arts. He finished a model at once, but dropped it that night on the stairs leading to his room. "And so," he wrote in his diary, "the day came to an end." ”

Other entries tell us that he would go back to his room before lunch and prepare some clay so he was ready at all times – whether it was modeling at the academy or modeling in his room after dinner in the evening.

Clay modeling was an instinctive part of his early practice. He called it "invention." This expressive head model is one of Canova's early works in Rome.

Antonio Canova, Adam and Eve Mourning the Dead Abel

c. 1818–1822, Terracotta Army, Vatican Museums, Vatican City

Antonio Canova, Adam and Eve Mourning the Dead Abel

c. 1818–1822, Terracotta Army, Vatican Museums, Vatican City

Antonio Canova, Adam and Eve Mourning the Dead Abel

c. 1818–1822, Antonio Canova Full Museum

Posanio, photographed by Luigi Spina

3. Canova's clay sketches give us an idea of his creative process.

Canova's famous large polished marble sculptures were originally small clay models. Although Canova also painted, he clearly recognized the advantages of clay. Bold, expressive, and comprehensive, these models showcase his creative process and imagination.

When Cavanova wanted to try a new idea, he just started over. His shocking Adam and Eve clay model of Mourning the Dead Abel shows that he repositioned his grieving parents.

In the third version, he carved from a piece of clay located in the center of the composition. Every movement and expression shows their pain.

Canova made these sketches before his death. He never executed them with marble.

Antonio Canova, The Three Goddesses of Beauty

1812, terracotta, Municipal Museum, Bassano del Grappa

Photographed by Luigi Spina

Antonio Canova, The Three Goddesses of Beauty

1812, terracotta, Musée de Lyon, bequest of Juliette Recamille, 1849

Antonio Canova, The Three Goddesses of Beauty

Plaster with metal pointing markings, 1813

Museo Gypsotheca

Possagno, photographed by Luigi Spina

4. Canova's work involves clay, terracotta, plaster, and finally marble.

In the early sketches of The Three Goddesses of Beauty, the dancer is spinning – notice the head sticking outward. In later versions, they took on a more solemn pose. Models of dancers in terracotta (fired clay) are copied into plaster and then transformed into marble.

Canova fired or baked many of his clay studies in ovens called kilns. He did make hundreds of models, but they were easily damaged and only about 60 survived. Kanova almost never gave up on his terracotta warriors, allowing them to remember past projects and plan for future ones.

Once finalized, the design is dimensioned and copied in plaster, which he and his assistants then transform into marble.

Francesco Chiaruttini

View of Antonio Canova's studio, Rome

1786, pen and ink, Museum of the City of Udine

5. Canova points from clay to marble

To transfer the design to marble, Canova relied on studio assistants, measuring tools, and a mechanical system called pointing. The black dots on the plaster model served as fixing points, which Canova and his assistants transferred to the same place on the rough marble block by careful and precise measurements. Many sculptors still use this method to this day.

This is the studio where Canova is working, aides at work, and the frame hangs above a full-size marble model of Pope Clement XIV.

Antonio Canova, Terpsichore Lyran (Muse of Lyric Poetry)

c。 1814–1816, marble

Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard Jr. C. Hanna Foundation

6. Canova ends with a personal touch.

The finish of the Kanova is legendary. He insisted on putting the finishing touches on himself. After the assistants made a model out of marble, Canova obsessively processed the surface of the stone himself. He uses "kisses and caresses" (as a friend wrote) to present the figure, seemingly translating the softness of clay into marble. He pressed in rather than chiseled, making the cold, hard stone look like warm, soft flesh. That's why his marble statues come to life. That is why they are comparable to the famous works of ancient Greece and Rome.

We can see the different textures created by Canova: curly hair, smooth face. He even made the flowing folds of the skirt (chiton) look rougher than the smooth twisted belt at the muse's waist.

part

Antonio Canova, A Study of Boys

ca. 1790–1800, Red Soil

Antonio Canova Full Museum, Posanio

Photographed by Luigi Spina

7. Canova also sometimes perfected his clay research.

Many of Canova's clay studies have also been completed. His sensitive portrayal of boys is a rare and wonderful example. Still, the first thing we noticed was the network of cracks scattered throughout it.

So what happened? Is it cracked due to uneven drying under the scorching sun? Or is it fired in the kiln before it dries completely? The moisture in the still wet clay turns into steam, which is squeezed out from the weak point under the action of pressure and cracks it. Or is the thickness of the clay uneven?

Canova never gave up the bust, but why he kept it is a mystery.

Antonio Canova, Madame Mel (Letizia Lamorino Bonaparte)

c. 1805, plaster

Antonio Canova Gypsum Museum

Posanio, photographed by Luigi Spina

8. Canova's sculptures are popular.

Europe's rich and powerful – including Napoleon, his mother and his predecessor (former Empress Josephine) – wanted Canova's marble sculptures. He did not disappoint and actively worked to meet the demand.

In Rome, his busy studio was packed with assistants and tourists eager to see the artist and his work. As his marbles spread throughout Europe and beyond, his fame grew. One even crossed the Atlantic: In 1821, George Washington traveled on an American warship to the State Capitol in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Princess Leopoldina von Esterházy

c. 1805-1806, Antonio Canova Full Museum

Posanio, photographed by Luigi Spina

9. Canova portrays powerful women.

Kanova portrayed many influential women, including Princess Leopoldina von Estehazy. She was a political adviser to Marie Antoinette's eldest brother, Joseph II, who ruled the Holy Roman Empire from 1765 to 1790, including Germany, Italy, and parts of Central Europe.

Von Estehazy was a member of a salon, a regular gathering of artists and elites, which was headed by a woman and included several others. She is also an artist, as we can see from the sketchbook she holds in this model.

Photo by Philip Schäfer from Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA

10. The final resting place of Canova is Posanio and Venice.

Canova spent the last years of his life designing and building a church in his hometown of Posanio. Canova died on October 13, 1822, before the temple of Tempio Canoviano was completed.

His body is laid to rest in Tampio, while his heart is buried in a church in Venice. The right hand he used to sculpt the sculpture is preserved in a vase at the Venetian Academy of Arts, where he originally studied.

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