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Lot Essay
The training and early stylistic development of Giovanni Dalmata or Ioannes Stephani Duknović of Trogir remains a mystery. When he arrived in Rome around in the 1460’s, his dramatic and sophisticated style was fully developed, leaving us to assume that he trained locally as a mason near Trogir, where he kept close ties throughout his life.
Dalmata’s popularity was fueled by collaborations with the foremost sculptors. For the Tomb of Pope Paul II, the largest and most elaborate papal tomb of the late fifteenth century, attribution of the overall lead sculptor is debated- while Mino de Fiesole and Giovanni Dalmata contributed roughly the same amount of elements, Dalmata supplied more of the key elements. Remnants of the ambitious tomb, now found in the Louvre and Vatican museums, show Dalmata’s dynamic treatment of various subjects, supreme finesse with drapery in stone and his signature portrayal figures seeming to rise out and over the plane of the relief. His inventive compositions combined with a flourish for detail set Dalmata apart from his contemporaries and contributed to the aesthetic developments of his day and continued to influence future sculptors such as the sculptor of the south entrance at the Church of Saint Augustine.
Giovanni Dalmata is also credited with propagating the Italian Renaissance style into the Danubian countries. In 1481, he returned to his native Croatia, then part of the Hungarian Empire, where he received several royal commissions from King Matthias Corvinus. The king also awarded him a title and estate in what is now Croatia. Notably, Dalmata’s work at Trogir Cathedral, his Hercules and the Hydra in Visegrád, and his relief altarpiece of the Madonna and Saints at the church of Diósgyőr still exist today, though several of his works in the region have not survived as well due to later invasions in the area. Following the passing of King Corvinus in 1490, Dalmata returned to Italy and was active in Venice among other cities.
In an era of restraint and repeated forms, Giovanni Dalmata produced high-relief figural compositions in non-formulaic configurations with a startlingly energetic movement and three-dimensionality. Nonetheless, these dynamic compositions of his known oeuvre boast resplendent drapery, dazzling decorative details and fluid gestures.
In the present example, note the exquisite, and wildly inventive, attention to drapery that spills over the ledge, the gathered closures on the underside of her sleeves, the knots in her clothes and folds of her veil, the lattice and tasseled cushion under the baby and integrated gold mosaic work. In the Madonna and Child and cherub in the tympanum from Chiesa di S. Giovanni in Norcia by Giovanni Dalmata and Workshop (fig. 1) the Madonna and Child share similarly tender and fluid gestures, modeling of the veil, and dynamic drapery and even the charmingly-eccentric details such as the splayed toes of Christ.
In contrast to these securing gestures, the Madonna’s head and shoulders in the present relief boldly project off the wall, accentuating the delicate modeling of the Madonna’s facial features. This tilt forward and the abundance of detail in the lower half indicate that this relief would have been placed well above eye height. While the original placement of the piece is unknown, the forward tilt and included mosaic details suggest an elaborate display.
Dalmata’s popularity was fueled by collaborations with the foremost sculptors. For the Tomb of Pope Paul II, the largest and most elaborate papal tomb of the late fifteenth century, attribution of the overall lead sculptor is debated- while Mino de Fiesole and Giovanni Dalmata contributed roughly the same amount of elements, Dalmata supplied more of the key elements. Remnants of the ambitious tomb, now found in the Louvre and Vatican museums, show Dalmata’s dynamic treatment of various subjects, supreme finesse with drapery in stone and his signature portrayal figures seeming to rise out and over the plane of the relief. His inventive compositions combined with a flourish for detail set Dalmata apart from his contemporaries and contributed to the aesthetic developments of his day and continued to influence future sculptors such as the sculptor of the south entrance at the Church of Saint Augustine.
Giovanni Dalmata is also credited with propagating the Italian Renaissance style into the Danubian countries. In 1481, he returned to his native Croatia, then part of the Hungarian Empire, where he received several royal commissions from King Matthias Corvinus. The king also awarded him a title and estate in what is now Croatia. Notably, Dalmata’s work at Trogir Cathedral, his Hercules and the Hydra in Visegrád, and his relief altarpiece of the Madonna and Saints at the church of Diósgyőr still exist today, though several of his works in the region have not survived as well due to later invasions in the area. Following the passing of King Corvinus in 1490, Dalmata returned to Italy and was active in Venice among other cities.
In an era of restraint and repeated forms, Giovanni Dalmata produced high-relief figural compositions in non-formulaic configurations with a startlingly energetic movement and three-dimensionality. Nonetheless, these dynamic compositions of his known oeuvre boast resplendent drapery, dazzling decorative details and fluid gestures.
In the present example, note the exquisite, and wildly inventive, attention to drapery that spills over the ledge, the gathered closures on the underside of her sleeves, the knots in her clothes and folds of her veil, the lattice and tasseled cushion under the baby and integrated gold mosaic work. In the Madonna and Child and cherub in the tympanum from Chiesa di S. Giovanni in Norcia by Giovanni Dalmata and Workshop (fig. 1) the Madonna and Child share similarly tender and fluid gestures, modeling of the veil, and dynamic drapery and even the charmingly-eccentric details such as the splayed toes of Christ.
In contrast to these securing gestures, the Madonna’s head and shoulders in the present relief boldly project off the wall, accentuating the delicate modeling of the Madonna’s facial features. This tilt forward and the abundance of detail in the lower half indicate that this relief would have been placed well above eye height. While the original placement of the piece is unknown, the forward tilt and included mosaic details suggest an elaborate display.