Giocondo Albertolli (1742–1839) - Set of 2: Cornice Profiles and Ornament, Chimneypiece and Overmantel Mirror – Engraving (18th

This set of two large engraved plates presents designs for neoclassical interior decoration by Giocondo Albertolli, one of the leading ornamentalists of late eighteenth-century Italy.

Demonstration in Large Scale of Cornice Profiles: an architectural study of ornamental friezes, acanthus foliage, egg-and-dart mouldings and relief panels, drawn on a large scale so that every curve and projection can be studied and reproduced. Precise outline and carefully graded shading give the ornaments a convincing sense of relief.

Elevation of a Chimneypiece and Mirror: a design for an elaborate mantelpiece surmounted by an ornamental mirror frame, with caryatid supports, classical medallions and accompanying moulding profiles. Shown in measured elevation, the design illustrates the harmonious integration of architecture and decoration that characterised the refined interiors of the period.

Both plates reflect the revival of classical antiquity that transformed European taste in the second half of the eighteenth century. Inspired by the ornaments of ancient Rome and by the discoveries at Herculaneum and Pompeii, Albertolli developed a clear, elegant decorative vocabulary based on acanthus scrolls, rosettes, garlands, medallions and finely profiled mouldings. His published designs were intended as models for architects, craftsmen and students, and they served for decades as teaching tools in academies across Italy and beyond. Their large format and precise execution made them both practical working references and handsome decorative prints.

Giocondo Albertolli (1742–1839) was an architect, decorator and teacher from Bedano in the canton of Ticino. Trained in Parma and Florence, he settled in Milan, where he collaborated with the architect Giuseppe Piermarini on the decoration of the Palazzo Reale and the Villa Reale at Monza, among other projects. In 1776 he was appointed the first professor of ornament at the newly founded Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera, a post he held for nearly forty years. His influential publications, including Ornamenti diversi (1782), Alcune decorazioni di nobili sale (1787) and Miscellanea per i giovani studiosi del disegno (1796), established him as a defining figure of Lombard Neoclassicism.

Artist or Maker: Giocondo Albertolli
Dimensions: Approximately 63 cm x 58 cm (each).
Medium: Engraving.
Date: 18th Century.
SKU: PLA-0930-2

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