Della Robbia : Sculpting with Color in Renaissance Florence

Boston: MFA Publications, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, 2016. Hardcover. NF/VG A beautiful copy. Navy blue boards; gilt lettering on spine. Color-illustrated blue dust jacket. 175 pp. with mostly color illustrations throughout. Studded with the most magnificent color photos, this catalogue by Marietta Cambareri, for the exhibit by the same name, explores the sumptuous glazed terracotta sculpture created by Luca della Robbia, his nephew Andrea della Robbia, various kinsmen, workshop assistants, and rivals in 15th-century Florence. (Andrea Engle's Reviews) "The glazed terra-cotta technique invented by Luca della Robbia, along with his exceptional skill as a sculptor, placed him firmly in the first rank of Renaissance artists in the fifteenth century. The Della Robbia studio produced dazzling multicolored ornaments for major Florentine buildings, delicately modeled and ingeniously constructed freestanding statues, serene blue-and-white devotional reliefs for domestic use, charming portraits of children and commanding busts of rulers, along with decorative and liturgical objects. Important patrons from the Medici family to the French court enhanced the reputation of the Della Robbia style and technique, which in turn inspired imitation by rival artists.