Encyclopaedia Britannica > Volume 15, NIC-PAR

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gracp, an agreeable taste for flesign, without great cor-
J rection, a mellowness of pencil, ami a beautiful mix¬
ture of colours.
Antonio Allegri, called Corregio, was the father and
greatest ornament of this school. He began like the
painters of his time to imitate nature alone *, but, as he
was chiefly delighted with the graceful, he was care¬
ful to purify his design from all short turnings and un¬
necessary angles. He perceived that largeness contri¬
buted to grace ; and therefore he not only rejected all
small figures, but enlarged as much as possible the out¬
lines, avoided acute angles and straight lines, and by
these means give an easy grandeur to his design. He
made his figures elegant and large } he varied the out¬
lines by frequent undulations ; but he was not always
pure and correct.
Corregio painted in oil, a kind of painting suscep¬
tible of the greatest delicacy and sweetness 5 and as
his character led him to cultivate the agreeable, he
gave a pleasing captivating tone to all his pictures.
He sought transparent colours to represent shades con¬
formable to nature, and adopted a manner of glazing
which actually rendered his shadows more obscure.
Obscurity in painting cannot be fully obtained without
transparent colours } for these absorb the rays of light,
and of consequence give less reflection. He laid his co¬
lours very thick on the brightest parts of his pictures, to
make them capable of receiving, by a proper touch, the
greatest degree of light. He perceived, that the reflec¬
tions of light correspond with the colour of the body
from which they are reflected 5 and on these principles
he founded his theory of colours with respect to light
and shade and reflection. But it is chiefly in the co¬
lour of his shades that he deserves to be imitated •, for
his lights are too clear, and somewhat heavy j and his
fleshy parts are not sufficiently transparent.
Harmony and grace are connected together j and
on this account Corregio excelled also in harmony.
As the delicacy of his taste suffered him not to em¬
ploy sh’ong oppositions, he naturally became a great
master in this part, which chiefly consists of easy gra¬
dations from one extreme to another. He was har¬
monious in his design, by making the lines which
formed the angles of the contour arched and undula¬
ted. But in the lights and shades, he placed always
between the two extremes a space which served to
unite them, and to form a passage from the one to
the other. The delicacy of his organs made him per¬
ceive, better than any other artist, what relief was
necessary to the eye after a violent exertion } and he
was therefore careful to follow a bold and prevailing
colour with a demi-tint, and to conduct the eye of the
spectator, by an invisible gradation, to its ordinary
state of tension. In the same manner (says Mengs) does
agreeable and melting music pull one so gently out of
sleep, that the awaking resembles enchantment more
than the disturbing of repose. A delicate taste in co¬
lours, a perfect knowledge of the claro obscuro, the
art of uniting light to light, and shade to shade, to¬
gether with that of detaching the objects from the
ground, inimitable, grave, and perfect harmony, were
the qualities which distinguished Corregio from all
the painters, and placed him near the head of his pro¬
fession.
The Caracci, Lewis, Augustin, and Hannibal, form-
PAINTING. 637
ed what is called the second Lombard school, which is Schools,
frequently distinguished by the name of the school of1 v--" ^
Bologna.
Lewis was the master of the other two •, he had
studied the works of Titian and Paul Veronese at Ve¬
nice, those of Andre del Sarte at Florence, those of
Corregio at Parma, and those of Jules Romaen, at
Mantua ; but he chiefly endeavoured to imitate the
manner of Corregio. Hannibal fluctuated between Cor¬
regio and Titian. Augustin their rival in painting had
his mind cultivated by learning, and devoted part of
his time to poetry and music, to dancing and to other
manly exercises. These three painters often employed
their talents on the same piece j and it was admirable
that their- united labours seemed to be animated with
the same spirit.
They established an academy at Bologna, which their
zeal for the advancement of their art made them call
LAcademia degli Desiderosi; but it was afterward call¬
ed the Academy of the Caracci, because the reputation
which these artists acquired, permitted not a more il¬
lustrious name to be given to an establishment of which
they were the founders. In this school were taught the
art of constructing models, perspective, and anatomy 5
lessons were given on the beautiful proportions of na¬
ture, on the best manner of using colours, and on the
principles of light and shade. They held frequent con¬
ferences, in which not only artists, but men of general
knowledge, were permitted to elucidate points relative
to the art of painting : but they were separated upon
Hannibal’s going to Rome to adorn the gallery of the
cardinal Farnese.
The works of the Caracci are often, from the resem¬
blance of their manner, confounded together ; especial¬
ly those which were finished previous to the residence of
Hannibal at Rome. Meanwhile each of them has a de¬
cided character distinct from the other two. Lewis had
less fire, but more of gracefulness and grandeur; Au¬
gustin had more spirit in his coneeption, and more plea¬
santness in his execution : Hannibal is characterized by
boldness, by a design more profound, by an expression
more lucky, and by an execution more solid.
Sir Joshua Reynolds, who saw the works of Lewis at
Bologna, holds him out in his discourses as the best mo¬
del for what is called in painting; which is the fa¬
culty of disposing colours in such a manner as to express
our sentiments and ideas. “ Lodovico Caracci,” says
he, “ (I mean in bis best works) appears to me to ap¬
proach the nearest to perfection. His unaffected breadth
of light and shadow, the simplicity of colouring, which,
folding its proper rank, does not draw aside the least
. Jga.-t of the attention from the subject, and the solemn
effect of that twilight which seems diffused over his pic¬
tures, appears to me to correspond with grave and dig¬
nified subjects better than the more artificial brillian¬
cy of sunshine which enlightens the pictures of Ti¬
tian.”
Hannibal is esteemed by the best judges as a model
for beauty and design. Those who blame him for be¬
coming less a colourist at Rome than he was at Bologna*
ought to recollect that it is his performances at Rome
which have chiefly secured his reputation. Severe cri¬
tics have maintained that his design is too little varied
in his figures ; that he excels only in male beauty ; that
in imitating ancient statues, he excites some resemblance,,
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