Domenico Fontana and the Art of Stucco: Roman Worksites

This paper reports on part of a research project on the Ticinese architect Domenico Fontana conceived and implemented by the Archivio del Moderno, Università della Svizzera italiana. Domenico Fontana (1543–1607) is one of the most representative figures of Roman artistic culture of the late sixteenth century. By analysing the use of stucco throughout his career, and how he manages the material within the architectural building sites under his direction, we can shed new light not only on his professional career but also, more generally, on the way Roman building sites of the time were organised and functioned. The paper examines Fontana’s attitudes towards stucco, analysing the matter from the perspective of both his activity as an artisan in plaster and as architect and site manager. In investigating these issues we are able to illustrate two fundamental aspects of Fontana’s career: how he dealt with patrons and what kind of partnership and cooperation strategies he established with other architects, artists, and the general labour force active on his worksites. Although relating to largely lost works, the first Roman experiences of the Ticinese architect can be reconstructed through several literary sources and archival documents. Domenico arrived in Rome in 1563 following in his brother Giovanni’s footsteps; he began his Roman activity in the construction industry in the manner of many other Ticinese and Lombard artists and architects. Here, he worked with the maestri di muro, training as a plasterer. In 1568, he is recorded in this specific activity on the building site at Villa D’Este at Tivoli, and in 1572 in the Palazzo dei Conservatori on the Campidoglio. A year later, the records show him in the service of Cardinal Ricci, for his villa on the Pincio (later Villa Medici) and for a palazzo in via Giulia (now Palazzo Ricci Sacchetti). By retracing these Roman beginnings, we can clarify the kinds of stucco works fashioned by Fontana within the architectural worksites. A question that arises is whether these works should be considered among the lavori di muro. In a measure and estimate of the works at the Lateran palace, Domenico himself states that the hornamenti di stucco should be considered as lavori che appartengono al muratore, or ‘works pertaining to the mason’. This conception embodies a conviction that can be traced to his previous experience as a construction worker, but also opens more general questions on the role – or roles – of plasterers in Roman building sites of the late sixteenth century, enabling analysis of the procedures with which Domenico and the Fontana ‘enterprise’ organised and managed the stucco workers within their architectural operations.