Alessandro Vittoria: Most rare in marble portraits

In his famous Lives of the Artists, Giorgio Vasari describes the sculptor Alessandro Vittoria as ‘most rare in marble portraits’. From humble beginnings, Vittoria (1525–1608) went on to become one of the greatest Italian sculptors of his age.

who was alessandro vittoria?

Vittoria was born in Trento, a city in the far north of Italy. In the mid-16th century, it played host to the Council of Trent, which the Catholic Church convoked to discuss the threats posed by Protestantism. A portrait of the young Vittoria exists from this time, painted by another north Italian, Giovanni Battista Moroni. Like many other artists, Moroni went to Trento to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the prominent Council delegates, many of whom wanted to have their portraits done. Moroni’s portrait of Vittoria (now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna) shows him as a confident young man holding a small marble torso, an emblem of the kind of sculpture that would make him famous. Alessandro Vittoria went on to develop a great skill at sculpting marble portraits in the style of ancient Roman busts, a genre he effectively re-invented and which made him sought-after by numerous patrons.

the development of Vittoria’s career

Vittoria was not only ‘rare in marble portraits’; he was also skilled in plasterwork. When he first went to Venice, he found work with the sculptor and architect Jacopo Sansovino. They collaborated on the steep barrel-vaulted entrance to the Biblioteca Marciana, completely encrusting it in painted stucco. If Vittoria had stuck to this kind of thing, we probably would not know his name today. The skill is undeniable but the effect is overpowering. It is probably lucky for posterity that Vittoria quarrelled with Sansovino. As a result, he found a different outlet for his talents, and he went on to sculpt marble bust after marble bust of well-fed statesman and administrators. Today they provide a fascinating window on an age.

vittoria in venice

Generally, the best place to admire Vittoria’s work is Venice. There, you can find him in Ca’ d’Oro, the Frari, the Museo Correr, and the Doge’s Palace. He was a contemporary of Tintoretto and Veronese, and with them he helped Venice in her project of self-glamorisation in an era when her best days were already beginning to be behind her. We know where Vittoria lived in Venice. His house was just off the Riva degli Schiavoni. A hotel stands on the site of the building now but in Vittoria’s day there was a beautiful garden where Vittoria kept a fine collection of works of art, including a marvellous self-portrait by Parmagianino, shown reflected in a convex mirror (also now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum).

vittoria’s tomb

When Vittoria died, he was buried in the church of San Zaccaria, very close to where he had lived. His tomb slab is simple, a black flagstone laid in the floor. However, on the wall next to it is an elaborate monument designed by himself, with a ‘rare marble portrait’ in the antique style. Alongside it are mourning figures of Sculpture, Painting and Architecture. Additionally, it contains a Latin inscription praising Vittoria as someone ‘who when alive drew out from marble the faces of the living’.

Annabel Barber

See here for details of our relevant titles: Blue Guide Venice and Blue Guide Trentino & the South Tyrol.