Giulio Romano

Giulio Romano jo͞oˈlyō rōmäˈnō [key], c.1492–1546, Italian painter, architect, and decorator, whose real name was Giulio Pippi. He was the favorite pupil of Raphael and while still a youth was entrusted with the painting of most of the frescoes in the loggias (from designs by Raphael) and a group of figures in the Stanza of the Incendio di Borgo in the Vatican and also, together with Gianfrancesco Penni, with the decoration of the ceiling of the Villa Farnesina, all in Rome. After the death of Raphael, he completed the frescoes of the life of Constantine in the Vatican as well as Raphael's Coronation of the Virgin and Transfiguration (both: Vatican Gall.). Forced to flee Rome in 1524 for having designed pornographic prints, he entered the service of the duke of Mantua, for whom he executed paintings and architectural and engineering projects. He reconstructed the cathedral, established a school of art, and designed the nearby Church of San Benedetto. He was the architect of the ducal palace and rebuilt the Palazzo del Te, decorating both of them with celebrated illusionistic and somewhat melodramatic frescoes. In 1546 he was appointed architect to St. Peter's, but he died in the same year. Well-known oils include The Stoning of St. Stephen (Church of Santo Stefano, Genoa) and Adoration of the Kings (Louvre). Romano was one of the creators of mannerism.

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