Overview

Bronze is generally defined as an alloy of copper and tin, but can contain zinc, lead and other elements. The term ‘bronze’ is often applied to any copper-alloy sculpture. Being both costly and luxurious, it arguably carried the most significance of all the sculptural materials. In the Renaissance, the use of bronze embodied power, authority and eternity and emulated the classical past. Yet it was one of the easiest materials to recycle, especially when the need for artillery was ever present. The Italian Renaissance was, nonetheless, a golden age for the production of sculpture in bronze, both on a grand scale for the religious and public arenas – such as Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise, Verrocchio’s Colleoni monument or Cellini’s Perseus – and in the form of intimate statuettes and small-scale functional bronzes for the home and scholar’s study, by artists and their workshops such as Riccio, Antico and Giambologna. Drawing on the latest research, The Culture of Bronze explores the material and making of bronzes; the inter-relationships and collaboration between sculptor, founder and owner in the key centres of production, such as Florence, Padua, and the often over-looked city of Ferrara; as well as the inter-connections with Northern Europe. Encompassing works made for domestic, religious and civic environments, the book explores the symbolism of bronze, and the bronzes themselves, within their broader context in renaissance society. Some 200 images will be used to illustrate The Culture of Bronze, making it a valuable sourcebook and an essential purchase for anyone with an interest in sculpture, in bronze or in artistic production in the Renaissance.

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9781851779659

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Reviews

Everything you need to know about Renaissance bronzes' might be an alternative title for this carefully cogitated and well-written volume. -- Charles Avery, Burlington Magazine, 162, February 2020

'Everything you need to know about Renaissance bronzes' might be an alternative title for this carefully cogitated and well-written volume. Charles Avery, Burlington Magazine, 162, February 2020

Author Information

Peta Motture is a Senior Curator of Sculpture at the Victoria and Albert Museum

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