Saint Mark
Giorgio Vasari·1570-1571
Historical Context
Giorgio Vasari's Saint Mark from 1570-71 is a panel painting by the artist, architect, and writer whose Lives of the Artists remains the foundational text of art history. Vasari's paintings, while overshadowed by his literary achievements, represent the late Mannerist style he helped theorize in his critical writings. This image of the Evangelist Mark, depicted with his lion attribute, reflects Vasari's academic approach to religious subject matter.
Technical Analysis
Vasari's oil-on-panel technique demonstrates the Mannerist academic style with smooth, polished surfaces and carefully composed figural forms. The clear coloring and precise drawing reflect his theoretical commitment to disegno (design/drawing) as the foundation of painting.
Provenance
Commissioned 1569, with NGA 2012.79.2 (_Saint Luke_), by Pope Pius V for the Chapel of the Archangel Michael in the _Torre Pio_ of the Vatican Palace;[1] begun December 1570 and finished by June 1571; chapel dismantled after 1750. probably Charles Grignion II [1754-1804], Rome; his brother, Thomas Grignion [c. 1748-1821], London;[2] (sale, Christie's, London, 2 May 1807, no. 55, bought in); (sale, Christie's, London, 28-29 April 1809, no. 92); Sir Thomas Baring [1772-1848], Stratton Park, Hampshire; purchased from his estate by his son, Thomas Baring [1799-1873], London and Stratton Park; by inheritance to his nephew, Thomas George Baring, 1st earl of Northbrook [1826-1904], London and Stratton Park; by inheritance to his son, Francis George Baring, 2nd earl of Northbrook [1850-1929], London and Stratton Park; (sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 12 December 1919, no. 138 [with NGA 2012.79.2]); Vicars. (Galerie Charles Brunner, Paris), by 1929.[3] Don Lorenzo Pellerano, Buenos Aires; (his sale, Guerrico & Williams, Buenos Aires, October 1933, no. 970 [with NGA 2012.79.2 as no. 971]). (sale, Sotheby's, New York, 5 June 1986, no. 11 [with NGA 2012.79.2]); (Richard L. Feigen and Co., New York); sold to Damon Mezzacappa, Palm Beach, Florida; (sale, Sotheby's, New York, 11 January 1996, no. 55 [with NGA 2012.79.2], bought in); Damon Mezzacappa, Palm Beach, Florida; gift 2012 to NGA. [1] Provenance according to the 1996 sale catalogue. [2] Charles Grignion II, a British artist who lived and worked in Italy, acquired numerous paintings from prominent Italian aristocratic families in financial need. He apparently sent them to Thomas, his older brother and a watchmaker and clockmaker, for resale in England. See the description for Sale Catalog Br-487 in The Getty Provenance Index Database; copy in NGA curatorial files. [3] The paintings were numbers 2267 (_Saint Mark_) and 2268 (_Saint Luke_) in Brunner's stock; Brunner labels remain on the reverse of both panels.
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