Italian sculptors of the king's Stanislaus Augustus court

• Authors: Mikocka-Rachubowa K.
• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

In the late 60s of the 18th century, in the last king of Poland Stanislaus Augustus' court, the studio of sculpture came into being. Works for the decoration of the king's palaces were created there. The director of this studio was the French sculptor André Le Brun, appointed by the king in Rome. His co-workers were exclusively Italians. By bringing them to Poland and performing the protectorate over their activity, Stanislaus Augustus created a significant center of sculpture in his court. The purpose of this article is to describe the activity of Italian sculptors, engaged by the king, who also worked for people from his circle. All of the works by Giacomo Monaldi (1733-1798) who came from Rome to Warsaw in the late 60s of the 18th century and later died there, concerned Poland. The three Staggi brothers from Carrara: Francesco Maria (1755-1788), Giovachino (1761-1809) and Pietro (1754-after 1814), are also famous mainly for the works which were completed for Stanislaus Augustus. On the contrary, Tommaso Righi (1727-1802) spent nearly all his life in Rome, where he created many well known pieces of sculpture. He came to Poland when he was almost 60 and lived there until the end of his life. Giacomo Contieri, the sculptor from Venice, also worked in Stanislaus Augustus' court in the 80s of the 18th century. In the archives we can find many works by Italian 'formatori' Davino Cristofani and Giuseppe Pellegrini, engaged by the court during this period. In 1787-1794, the 'marble factory' was also working near the quarries in Debnik, near Cracow. It employed mostly Italians coming from Carrara; the most remarkable of them was Leonardo Galli (1760-1812). After the abdication of Stanislaus Augustus, some of his sculptors left, seeking employment elsewhere; others remained in Poland but the king's center of sculpture ceased to exist in the mid 90s of the 18th century. 41 Illustrations.

Keywords

EN

ITALIAN SCULPTORS IN POLAND; KING'S SCULPTURE'S CENTER; STANISLAUS AUGUSTUS PONIATOWSKI

Discipline

• ARTS_&_ARCHITECTURE: ARTS & ARCHITECTURE

• Publisher: Polska Akademia Nauk
• Journal: Rocznik Historii Sztuki
• Year: 2004
• Volume: 29
• Pages: 49-120
• Document type: ARTICLE

Contributors

author

Mikocka-Rachubowa K.

• K. Mikocka-Rachubowa, Instytut Sztuki PAN, ul. Dluga 26/28, 00-950 Warszawa, Poland

Identifiers

CEJSH db identifier

04PLAAAA0007162