The monograph Niccolò Tornioli a painter between Caravaggism and Baroque, published by Tau Editrice Todi, illustrates the life and career of a Sienese artist who was active, during the first half of the seventeenth century, mainly in the papal city. The sources, but above all a fairly large number of documents, letters, contracts of assignment, wills, inventory of assets, contemporary or shortly post-death testimonies have made it possible to reconstruct a tormented personality, rich in multiple interests, ranging from painting, to sculpture, science, theater. Tornioli reveals himself to be a contradictory and fragile man, aggressive and naive, in the spasmodic search for fame, which he manages to conquer with great sacrifices, but who sometimes loses in a moment due to reckless attitudes that will put him in the position of having to interrupt, even if only temporarily, important acquaintances. His works are the mirror of an era that is anything but peaceful and of the painter’s restless character: the early ones reflect the training between Rustichino, Manetti, the references to Caravaggio and the Bolognese, those of maturity his anxiety, being populated, depending on the case, of crowds or pairs of ambiguous characters, whose silences and smiles leave free interpretation to the viewer, who is bewitched by those mysterious and in some cases violent atmospheres. The subjects treated, apart from the paintings made for economic and market needs, are rare in painting and for this reason the solutions found by the artist prove to be decidedly original and fascinating.
For the first time the complex artistic and human parable of Tornioli is retraced in its entirety, from his training in Siena to his arrival in Rome, where, thanks to the support of Federico IV Borromeo and Teodoro Amayeden, the painter will meet important clients such as Maurizio di Savoia and Virgilio Spada, his admirer par excellence. And after having amazed an attentive public with the ephemeral apparatuses made in honor of Ferdinand III of Habsburg, he will propose himself spontaneously and free of charge to the oratorian fathers of San Filippo Neri, to fresco the vault of the red antechamber of the Vallicellian complex. From him the Barberinis, Cardinal Francesco Adriano Ceva, the Marquise Cristiana Duglioli Angelelli, Virgilio Spada will welcome him under his protective wing, presenting him to his brother Bernardino, who will buy seven paintings, and to Pope Innocenzo X Pamphilj, honored with the first version of Cain and Abel . Virgil, for his part, in addition to securing Gli Astronomi , considered the artist’s masterpiece, testimony of the scientific culture of the time, commissioned the altarpieces for the church of San Paolo in Bologna, through which the oratorian intends to tell , without ever appearing explicitly, his spiritual conversion.
Tornioli fulfills numerous private and public assignments, keeps unfinished paintings in his studio, which ends when necessary, and as many dedicated to the most sought-after subject ever, Mary’s motherhood, awaiting possible buyers. With his brother Giuliano, he dedicated himself to the activity of copyist of the great masters of the sixteenth century, of Correggio in particular, until the occasion of his life arrived, the realization of the mosaic decoration of the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament for the basilica of San Pietro . The flattered artist is immediately activated, but is surprised while he paints on the tiles already placed on site , perhaps because he wanted to show off the technique of painting on marble of which he claimed to be the inventor. But the Reverend Fabbrica fires him on the spot together with his colleague Spadarino.
Despite the unfortunate episode and the disappearance of his brother, who, despite the serious problems with justice, which had hindered Niccolò’s success in Florence, was still a trusted collaborator, Tornioli continues to work for clients from other locations, such as Siena or Amandola, or for religious orders such as the Dominican nuns of SS. Domenico and Sisto in Rome. The oratorian Virgil, who publicly distances himself from the Sienese, still protects him, coming to justify it both with the oratorian fathers, who complained about the slowness of the artist to whom, however, they did not pay the due fees, and with the Fabbrica di San Pietro, guilty of not having provided quality cards and of not respecting the terms of payments, and commissioning the Sienese to decorate the much-coveted family chapel in the church of Santa Maria in Vallicella, destined to remain at the planning stage due to the death of the painter.
The will and the inventory of assets show how Tornioli tried to reward all the people who had assisted him during the unspecified illness, which afflicted him in recent times, and to redeem his mistakes, entrusting the investment in the remediation of Paludi Pontine the economic future of his wife Cecilia Castelli and daughter Francesca. Furthermore, Niccolò turns out to be a prolific draftsman, confirms himself as a scholar of anatomy, but also a landscape painter and a gifted portraitist, probably in the direction of a workshop in which minor collaborators were employed.
And although at least one document remembers him with the title of knight, Tornioli died in poverty. It will be the marriage of his daughter with a Lamparelli to give justice to his work, the grandson Carlo Maria will continue in the footsteps of his grandfather, treasuring those paintings that were left to the family. With the other works, the debts will be paid off and the lawyer Francesco Leopardi, who defends the artist’s heirs in the lawsuit against the heirs of Paolo Maruscelli for the assignment of the reclaimed lands of the Agro Pontino, will be paid off.
The second part of the book consists of a catalog raisonné of known and unpublished works, traced through auctions and private individuals: the critical and collecting history of each is reconstructed, the evolution of style is analyzed in relation to the literary, historical or religious that had inspired it, to try to decode the revealing message of the thought of its author and / or the client. Tornioli’s style, which had the merit of experimenting with different techniques and supports, oscillates between the naturalism of the Caravaggeschi, Gentileschi, Gramatica, Manfredi, Riminaldi, Saraceni, Spadarino, Valentin, Tournier, the classicism of Domenichino, Sacchi, Schedoni, the baroque of Cortona, the work of the sculptors Algardi, Bernini, Mochi, colleagues who at the same time exert an influence on his painting, but which he sometimes anticipates with often original solutions.
The last section of the book contains the documents, the works cited by the sources, but not traced, the latest attributions, the bibliography and the sitography.
The monograph on Tornioli is intended to be a contribution to a broader knowledge of an artist who, already in the second half of the seventeenth century, Francesco Borromini and his oratorian father Virgilio Spada believed that he should occupy a more important place in the cultural panorama of the moment: misfortune and unpredictability. they have condemned him to remain on the sidelines for too long, often confused with other authors, sought only by niche collectors. Perhaps today, thanks to a greater knowledge of his business, we can understand the credit and esteem that Niccolò Tornioli enjoyed in his time, and demonstrate how art and sincere friendships can redeem an existence marked by glories and failures. , a fragile personality, in need of moral, as well as economic support, to believe in herself and be able to put her talent to good use.