| Bonifacio de'Pitati (Verona, 1487--Venice, 1553) was praised during the Cinquecento by such notable writers as Giorgio Vasari and Pietro Aretino and received commissions from the Cavalli, Capello, and Querini families as well as the lucrative government commission for the decoration of the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi. Bonifacio has been named as a teacher of Tintoretto, Jacopo Bassano, and Schiavone, yet is little known today outside of specialists in Venetian Cinquecento painting. The combination of a limited number of documents, only two signed paintings, and a large workshop has left a tangled legacy regarding his corpus and position within the history of Venetian painting. This study examines Bonifacio's career, in particular his presence within a 'Romanist' artistic and patronage circle and incorporation of outside sources, and his decline in critical acceptance from the sixteenth to the twentieth century.;Chapter one discusses Bonifacio's possible early training in Verona and his move to Venice where he entered the shop of Palma Vecchio. It is suggested that Bonifacio's relationship with Lorenzo Lotto, Pietro Aretino, Jacopo Sansovino, and members of the powerful 'Romanist' faction in Venice such as the Grimani and Capello families, is responsible for a number of his more prestigious commissions such as the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi decoration. His use of models, particularly northern prints, prints after Raphael, and antique sculpture are discussed in relation to his 'Venetianness' and supposed early role in Venetian Mannerism.;Chapters two and three are divided by century and track Bonifacio's critical fortunes with special attention given to important writers such as Giorgio Vasari, Francesco Sansovino, Marco Boschini, and Carlo Ridolfi. A 'crisis of identity' occurs with the gradual shift of Bonifacio from a pupil of Palma Vecchio to an imitator of Titian and a constructed corpus dominated by late workshop paintings (1540s, 1550s) displaying the influence of Tintoretto and Schiavone. Understanding the limitations and flawed analysis of earlier writers will help to better define the artistic persona of Bonifacio. |
