Tempesta and the Flemish painter
Matthijs Bril were commissioned by
Pope Gregory XIII to paint wide panoramas of the
Procession to Transfer the Relics of St. Gregory of Nazianzus (1572) for the
loggias on the third floor of the
Vatican Palace. He completed frescoes in the Palazzina Gambara at the
Villa Lante in
Bagnaia (1578-1609). From 1579–83, Tempesta participated in the decoration of the
Villa Farnese in
Caprarola, notably of this villa's Scala Regia. He is also known to have collaborated on
frescoes in the
Villa d'Este at
Tivoli and the Palazzina Gamara at
Villa Lante, Bagnaia. He painted a series of turbulent and crowded battle scenes for the Medici. He also completed a series of engravings on outdoor courtly hunting scenes. Tempesta painted frescoes for the Palazzos
Colonna, the
Doria Pamphilj, and for the
Marchese Giustiniani in his Roman palace, where Tempesta collaborated with
Paul Bril, and at
Bassano di Sutri. He painted a
Massacre of the Innocents for the church of
Santo Stefano Rotondo in Rome. Tempesta is now best known as a
printmaker in
etching and engraving. He also left numerous etchings, among them:
Plates from the Old Testament; twenty-four plates from the
Life of St. Anthony; a set of 150 prints from
Ovid’s Metamorphoses; 13 plates on
The Labours of Hercules and four plates on respectively
The ages of man;
The entry of Alexander into Babylon;
Diana and Actaon, and
The crucifixion (1612). In 1612 he engraved a series of plates under the title "Batavorum cum Romanis Bellum" after designs of the
Netherlandish artist
Otto van Veen, also known as Vaenius (1556-1629) and court painter to
Alessandro Farnese. Van Veen was influenced by the Italian mannerists but had developed his own style anticipating the
Flemish baroque of his pupil
Peter Paul Rubens. The series consists of 36 numbered engraved plates and illustrates the armed struggle between the ancient Dutch tribes and their Roman oppressors as narrated in
Tacitus' Histories. Each plate bears at the bottom an engraved legend in
Flemish and in Latin while a detailed explanation is printed on the otherwise blank verso. Plate I, signed 'Ant.Tempesta f. Anno 1611', shows 'Roma' and '
Batavia' in battle dress with respective scenic backgrounds, symbolizing the two nations. Fifteen other plates bear Tempesta's monogram. The plates depict heroic events, sieges, and battle scenes. This historicist work was very popular in its time. Tempesta also drew many designs for tapestries. == Gallery ==