Giovanni Pisano

(b Pisa, c. 1245-50; d Siena, before end of 1319). Son of (1) Nicola Pisano.

Giovanni Pisano is first mentioned in the contract for the pulpit of Siena Cathedral in 1265, which awarded him a higher payment (4 soldi) than Nicola's other assistants Arnolfo and Lapo (6 soldi for both). He probably worked with his father on the altar of S Jacopo (1273; destr.) in Pistoia Cathedral before beginning work on the Great Fountain, Perugia (c. 1277-8; see (1) above). Initially Giovanni's work was limited to carrying out Nicola's compositions and following his models, but he soon developed a style of his own, identifiable even in the context of his father's workshop, and he evidently enjoyed considerable autonomy on the Perugia fountain. He also benefited from contact with Arnolfo di Cambio, who was able to bring out the linear tensions inherent in Nicola's more plastic style and to emphasize the geometrical structures underlying the forms. Especially after Nicola's death, Giovanni developed an extraordinarily broad range of expression, carving figures that were solemn and contemplative or tormented and violent, often distorted and emaciated to convey emotion. His motifs were inspired variously by Nicola's severe and solemn classicism, by the agitated, dramatic sculpture of the Hellenistic and Roman traditions, and by French and German Gothic art. The inscription on Giovanni's pulpit in Pisa Cathedral records that he was 'endowed above all others with command of the pure art of sculpture, sculpting splendid things in stone, wood and gold'.

Part of the Pisano family

See the Abbreviations for further details.

The late Gothic art of the Italian sculptor Giovanni Pisano (ca. 1250-1314) set the stage for the development of the Renaissance style.

The son of the sculptor Nicola Pisano, Giovanni Pisano was listed as an assistant to his father in the contract of Sept. 29, 1265, for the pulpit in the Siena Cathedral. The terms of his employment indicate that he must have been a youthful apprentice; hence it is assumed that he was born about 1250. Giovanni carved the holy-water font in St. Giovanni Fuorcivitas, Pistoia, in the early 1270s and collaborated with his father on the Fontana Maggiore, Perugia, which was completed in 1278. Between 1278 and 1284 Giovanni executed a group of half-length figures including a prophet, St. Mark, and the Madonna (now in the Civic Museum, Pisa).

From 1284 to 1294 Giovanni worked on the Siena Cathedral, executing a number of life-sized statues of kings, prophets, and sibyls for the facade and flank. These statues, originally placed on the level above the portals, are among his most dynamic and lively works. They are covered with heaps of deeply folded drapery that assumes an animation of its own. The generally twisting postures of the figures and the strong outward glances of their eyes create a sense of movement and vibrancy. They are, in Pietro Toesca's words, "Gothic and Michelangelesque at the same time."

Giovanni worked in Pisa from about 1295 to 1300. From this period date three standing Madonnas preserved in Pisa: one in St. Maria della Spina; one in the Cathedral Museum; and an exquisite ivory statuette in the Cathedral Treasury, which strongly suggests that Giovanni had direct contact with French Gothic sculpture either through a visit to France or through exposure to French art brought to Italy.

Giovanni's marble pulpit for St. Andrea in Pistoia, completed in 1301, is in his finest Gothic style. Like Nicola Pisano's Pisa Baptistery pulpit, Giovanni's pulpit in Pistoia is hexagonal, but he introduced Gothic achitectural elements, such as the ogive arch, whereas Nicola had used Romanesque elements. The style of the narrative reliefs is, likewise, strikingly different. Instead of concentrating attention on the figures, Giovanni emphasized the abstract movement of light and shade across the surface. The carving is deeply cut, in places undercut, to emphasize the rhythmic movements of the figures and the backgrounds. The poses and gestures of individual figures tend to be made part of an overall rhythmic design, always graceful, always elegant. Where an episode lends itself to a dramatic depiction, as in the Massacre of the Innocents, Giovanni yields to a frank emotional display.

In 1302 Giovanni was commissioned to make a marble pulpit for the Cathedral in Pisa. It is markedly different from his and his father's other pulpits. Polygonal, with curving rather than flat sides, the architectural portions are elaborate and sculpturesque. The various parts of the pulpit are uneven in execution, which suggests the presence of numerous assistants. Work on this pulpit continued until 1310, during which time Giovanni carved two standing Madonnas: the altar Madonna for the Arena Chapel in Padua, before 1305, and the so-called Madonna della Cintola for the Cathedral in Prato, after 1305. Both Madonnas are works of great charm and are considered autograph works. The Madonna della Cintola, a less than half life-size marble statue, twists to look at the Child. Her figure is covered with drapery arranged in deep folds that fall in regular curves around her hips and down her legs. The Child, whose face is on the same level as the Madonna's, looks outward toward the faithful and raises a chubby hand in benediction.

In 1313 Giovanni was called to Genoa to execute the tomb of Margaret of Luxemburg, fragments of which are now in the Palazzo Bianco, Genoa. The last documentary reference to Giovanni is dated 1314, when he was in Siena.

Further Reading

Two studies of Giovanni Pisano are Adolfo Venturi, Giovanni Pisano: His Life and Work (1928), and Michael Ayrton, Giovanni Pisano: Sculptor, with an introduction by Henry Moore (1970). An important background study with information on Giovanni is John Pope-Hennessy, Introduction to Italian Sculpture, vol. 1: Italian Gothic Sculpture (1955).

For more information on Giovanni Pisano, visit Britannica.com.

Giovanni Pisano (c. 1250 – c. 1315) was an Italian sculptor, painter and architect. Son of the famous sculptor Nicola Pisano, he received his training in the workshop of his father.

In 1265-1268 he worked with his father at the pulpit in the Siena cathedral. The fountain Fontana Maggiora in Perugia was his next major work with his father. By the end of this project in 1278 his father may already have died. Another possibility is that Nicola Pisano died in 1284 when Giovanni took up residence in Siena. These first works were made in his father's style. It is difficult to tell who did exactly what. However the Madonna with Child can be attributed with certainty to Giovanni, showing a new style with a certain familiarity between Mother and Child.

Pulpit in the Duomo of Siena

His next work was in Pisa, sculpting the statues in the two rows of traceried gables at the exterior of the Baptistry (1277-1284). The vivacity of these statues is a new confirmation that he is leaving the serene style of his father behind.

He was appointed at the same time chief architect of the Siena cathedral between 1287 and 1296. This compelled him to travel often between these two cities. The elegant sculptures and the architectural design for the facade of the cathedral in Siena show his tendencies to blend Gothic art with reminders of Roman art.

In 1296 he returned to Pisa to begin work on the San Giovanni church. In 1301 he continued his work on the pulpit for the church of S. Andrea in Pistoia, which he had already started in 1297. The five reliefs on the pulpit are the Annunciation and Nativity; the Adoration, Dream of the Magi and Angel warning Joseph; the Massacre of the Innocents; the Crucifixion; and the Last Judgement.

Pulpit in the Cathedral of Pisa

His work between 1302 and 1310 at the new pulpit for the Cathedral of Pisa shows his distinct preference for movement in his characters, moving even further away his father's style. It shows nine scenes from the New Testament, carved in white marble with a chiaroscuro effect. It contains even a bold, naturalistic depiction of a naked Hercules. His figure Prudence in the pulpit may have been an inspiration for the Eve in the painting The Expulsion from the Garden of Eden by Masaccio. This pulpit with its dramatic scenes has become his masterwork. After the fire of 1595 it was packed away during the redecoration and was not rediscovered and re-erected until 1926.

The church of San Nicola in Pisa was enlarged between 1297 and 1313 by the Augustinians, perhaps by the design of Giovanni Pisano. He was also responsible of the façade of San Paolo a Ripa d'Arno.

His last major work dates probably from 1313 when he made a monument in memory of Margaret of Brabant (who died in 1311) at the request of her husband emperor Henry VII.

His works shows a mixture of French Gothic and the classical style, and Henry Moore referred to him as "the first modern sculptor".

One of his pupils was Giovanni di Balduccio, who also became a famous sculptor, and the architect and sculptor Agostino da Siena. He also had an influence on the painter Pietro Lorenzetti. Giorgio Vasari included a biography of Pisano in his book Le vite dei più eccellenti pittori, scultori, e architetti

The asteroid 7313 Pisano was named to honour Nicola and Giovanni Pisano.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Giovanni Pisano

• Carli, Enzo (1966). Giovanni Pisano. ISBN 88-7781-045-9. 
• Mellini, G.L. (1969). Il pulpito di Giovanni Pisano a Pistoia. 

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)