1536 -1603 · Florence and reform of mannerism

Narrative clarity, natural figures and measured space make Santi di Tito an essential actor in religious and pictorial renewal in Florence after 1560.

Santi di Tito was born in Florence in 1536 and died there in 1603. Trained in the Florentine environment, he stayed in Rome at the beginning of the 1560s and participated in major decorative projects linked to the pontificate of Pius IV. Back in Florence, he joined the Accademia del Disegno and worked for the churches, brotherhoods, the Medicean court and the Studiolo of Francis I. His art gradually moved away from artificial poses, unstable spaces and the complexities of the most sophisticated mannerism. He favors a readable construction, convincing gestures and direct religious emotion. He favors a readable construction, unstable gestures and the complexities of the most sophisticated mannerism. He favors a readable construction, unstable gestures and the complexities of the most sophisticated mannerism. He favors a readable construction, unstable gestures and the complexities of the most sophisticated mannerism. He favors a readable construction, convincing gestures and direct religious emotion. The Holy Family illustrates this research: the figures are brought together, the gazes circulate naturally and domestic tenderness becomes a support for meditation. Santi retains the discipline of Florentine drawing, but restores the bodies to their weight and the faces to a calm humanity. His altarpieces for Santa Croce, Santa Maria Novella, San Marco and other churches in Florence accompany the spiritual demands of the Catholic Reformation. An attentive portraitist, he also created civil decorations, preparatory drawings and architectural projects. His studio trains several artists, including his son Tiberio. Through his balance between tradition of drawing and a return to nature, Santi di Tito prepared an important part of Florentine painting from the beginning of the 17th century. There selection "Santi di Tito" notably compares The Holy Family. His reading favors composition.

Santi di Tito reforms mannerism from the inside: he preserves the drawing, but restores to the figures their weight, their calm and their human truth.