The Arts and Crafts of Older Spain, Volume 2 (of 3)Williams, Leonard
History
The Arts and Crafts of Older Spain, Volume 2 (of 3)
Williams, Leonard
Decorative arts -- Spain -- History
(4) _Cuenca_ tiles. Quantities of these, dating from the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries, may yet be seen in many parts of Seville; for
instance, in her churches or her convents, in her superb Alcázar, or in
the mansions of her old nobility. Probably the most remarkable of all
are those in the gardens of the Alcázar, and lining the walls of the
Pavilion of Charles the Fifth. The devices on these polychrome
_azulejos_ (16th century; Plate liv.) are very numerous, including men
and animals, centaurs and other monsters, the Pillars of Hercules, and
imitations of elaborate dress fabrics.
(5) _Pisano_ tiles. Although some facts have been unearthed concerning
the Italian Francesco Niculoso Pisano, we do not know precisely in what
year he came to Seville, or in what year he died. Davillier thought it
probable that he had studied at Faenza or at Caffagiolo. At all events,
it was Pisano who broadly launched the art of the Sevillian potters on
the stream of the Renaissance.[70] I have stated that the tiles which
bear his name are painted on a white or yellow ground. Consequently
their surface is flat, without the ridges and depressions of the
_cuenca_ or the _cuerda seca_ methods. We find _Pisano_ tiles applied to
various objects, such as tombs, altars, friezes, and archivolts. This
artist, says Gestoso, further introduced the use of two new
colours,--violet and rose. Several of his best productions are still
intact, including the doorway of the church of the monastery of Santa
Paula (in which he was assisted by a Spanish master, Pedro Millan), and
the altar of the Catholic Sovereigns in the Alcázar. Both these
masterpieces were executed in the year 1504, and bear Pisano's
signature. The doorway of Santa Paula is described by Gestoso as
consisting of a single body of masonry, distinct from that of the
building itself, though resting against it, and constructed of bricks
of uniform size, which show us, by their perfect symmetry, how skilful
were the masons of that time, with whom the Moorish craftsmanship was
yet a living power. The doorway is formed by a series of concentric
Gothic arches resting on slender pillars. The space which forms the
outer archivolt is most remarkable. Upon a ground of _azulejos_ which
copy the colour of the brickwork, we see a number of Plateresque designs
of exquisite beauty, painted in white and blue, with occasional touches
of other colours. Among the devices are chimeras, war-trophies, volutes,
chaplets, parapegms, antelopes, masks, and others which are
characteristic of the Florentine Renaissance. Upon this ground, and
enclosed by circular garlands in high relief, consisting of polychrome
fruits and flowers, are seven medallions containing figures of male and
female saints, except the one which is upon the keystone, and which
represents the birth of Christ. In this medallion the figures are
enamelled in white upon a cobalt-blue ground, recalling, as also do the
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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