Why did Arcimboldo paint the Four seasons?
To celebrate the reign of Emperor Maximilian II, Arcimboldo presented two series of composite heads: The Seasons and The Elements. In The Seasons (Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter), created in 1563, Arcimboldo combined plants associated with a par- ticular season to form a portrait of that time of year.
Where is the Vertumnus painting?
Skokloster Castle
Vertumnus was presented to Rudolf II after its completion. Its ownership shifted to the Swedish army after the Thirty Years’ War. Although art historians lost track of Vertumnus after this shift, it reappeared in 1845 in Sweden in Skokloster Castle, where it is currently located.
How many winter paintings did Arcimboldo paint?
The Seasons or The Four Seasons is a set of four paintings produced in 1563, 1572 and 1573 by Giuseppe Arcimboldo.
Who did Arcimboldo paint for?
He was a conventional court painter of portraits for three Holy Roman Emperors in Vienna and Prague, also producing religious subjects and, among other things, a series of coloured drawings of exotic animals in the imperial menagerie.
What did Arcimboldo do for art?
Arcimboldo’s applied art endeavors and conventional official portraits were celebrated. However, he was—and is—most well-known for his peculiar paintings of people made out of found objects. Called Composite Heads, these allegorical portraits feature busts made out of everything from fruits and vegetables to sea creatures and library books.
Why did Francisco Arcimboldo paint so many strange things?
A more likely explanation, however, is that the paintings are a product of the Renaissance era in which he lived, which was fascinated with riddles, puzzles, and the bizarre. If this was the case, then Arcimboldo’s strange depictions were only just catering to the tastes of the time.
Who was Giuseppe Arcimboldo’s father Biagio?
Giuseppe’s father, Biagio Arcimboldo, was an artist of Milan. Like his father, Giuseppe Arcimboldo started his career as a designer for stained glass and frescoes at local cathedrals when he was 21 years old.
What if Giuseppe Arcimboldo had died at the age of thirty?
“If, like Mozart, Giuseppe Arcimboldo had died at the age of thirty-five, he would have little interest for us today,” noted one biographer. At the Parc Astérix amusement park outside Paris, Arcimboldo’s work inspired this restaurant’s fantastical facade. Image via Lacasamorett.com.