The painted terracotta from Renaissance Florence(attributed to Antonio de’ Benintendi- 1512) is an impressive and faithful portrait of Cardinal Giovanni de’Medici, who in 1513, in his papal capacity, decided to bring Pietrasanta and its territory under the Florentine influence, after it had bounced for centuries between the control of Genoa and Lucca .
To celebrate the papal Lodo, (arbitral ruling) the so- called Capital of Culture of Versilia has decided to honor this historic event placing a huge marble monument of Leo X in the municipal square. One can wonder if he deserves it. Leo X did not have any air of sanctity : since he was appointed Cardinal at age 14, he considered the Church as a business to be attended in the most profitable way. Actually he did enjoy his papacy like a Renaissance Prince, revelling in banquets, parties, hunts, entertainment etc, he fuelled the detachment of Martin Lutero from the Roman Catholic Church. On the other hand, he was a great patron of Arts and Artists, such as Michelangelo and Raffaello , and his Lodo relating to Pietrasanta was definitely a milestone for the successful development of the town and surroundings, a sort of ‘ up-and-coming Versilia’. His Lodo allowed Pietrasanta to have a new territorial identity with political stability and economic importance,which generated the blooming of the marble industry, which is still going one today.
This marble will be used by Gabriele Vicari, outstanding sculptor from Lucca, whose works,such his recent impressing Galileo Galilei and astonishing Gabriele d’Annunzio,crown him as a master in figutative sculpture. In 2009 he won the international Portrait Pangolin prize organized by the National Portrait Gallery in London. Very attentive to features details, Vicari was captivated by the terracotta bust at the V&A, as captured the Cardinal’s character through the hand of a very good Florentine portraitist, who probably knew Giovanni de’ Medici in person. Less flattering than his painting by Raffaello (who in 1515 was commissioned by the same to design the wonderful cartoons for tapestries,treasured at the V&A as well) this bust speaks of a haughty, snooty, conceited and bit contemptuous person. Short tempered and self centred, even stubborn and surely pampered by his father Lorenzo il Magnifico, he was not a bad boy, but, being forced to follow a ‘career’ which did not align with his worldly orientation, he soon developed a great taste for power, hardening his character and exploiting his position Now LEO X is to be reproduced in the marble from the quarries of Seravezza and Pietrasanta, the ones which Michelangelo was ordered to find and use, at his much discomfort. The artist was not overjoyed to move there from Carrara and this caused friction with the Pope: accustomed to be obeyed, Leo X must have had the expression showed in this terracotta bust:let’s see if Vicari will opt for sweeter features of a dour but also very determined Pope , focused to make a Lodo which would become a turning point for the good fortunes of Pietrasanta.
MARGRETA MOSS
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