Giovanni Battista Naldini

Madonna and Child with saints, 1550s,Dicomano,near Florence

Giovanni Battista Naldini,The Collection of Ambergris,1570–1573

Giovanni Battista Naldini(1535–1591) was an Italianpainterin a late-Manneriststyle, active inFlorenceand Rome.

Biography

His first apprenticeship (1549–1557) was in the studio ofJacopo Pontormo.He went fromRomefor a number of months following 1560, and was recruited to work forGiorgio Vasariin 1562. He painted two crowded, mannerist canvases for theStudiolo of Francesco Iin thePalazzo Vecchio:theAllegory of Dreamsand theGathering ofAmbergris.

He supplied altarpieces toSanta Maria NovellaandSanta Croce.He painted an altarpiece ofCalling of Saint Matthewfor theSalviati ChapelinSan Marco,where he worked alongsideFrancesco Morandini.Ultimately, he is described by Freedberg as displaying work distantly derivative from the style ofAndrea del Sarto,as expressed by Naldini's two mentors and Sarto's two pupils: Pontormo and Vasari. Among his pupils were the CavalieriFrancesco Curradi,Cosimo Gamberucci.andCosimo Duti.

Naldini painted the cycle of frescoes concerning St John the Baptist in Rome, in the chapel of the saint in the church ofTrinità dei Montiin Rome in 1580. The chapel, which was added to the original church during works for the new facade, was built in 1570 by the architectGiovanni Antonio Dosio.In 1573 the Florentine bankerGiovanni Battista Altovitiacquired the patronage and dedicated the chapel to St. John the Baptist, the Patron Saint of his city. In about 1580 Giovanni Battista Naldini created the frescoes that are still well-preserved today.

He did a side-altar atSan Giovanni Battista Decollato,Rome, the showcase there for the Florentine high Maniera style.

References

• Freedberg, Sydney J. (1993). Pelican History of Art (ed.).Painting in Italy, 1500-1600.Penguin Books Ltd. pp. 610–611.