Spani was born and died in
Reggio Emilia. He initially trained with his grandfather,
Bartolommeo Clementi, and then apprenticed with
Antonio Begarelli. He soon modeled much of his work after the
mannerist style of
Michelangelo. The
Funeral Monument for the blessed Bernardo degli Uberti (1544) in the
Cathedral of Parma is his first work. He also completed some works for the Prati family in Parma. In the church of
San Andrea in Mantua, he sculpted a monument for the Bishop Andreossi (Andreasi) (1549), with a sphinx and bronze swan, flanked by sculptures of
Faith and
Charity . He also worked for the Cathedral of
Carpi and the church of
San Domenico in
Bologna. He was prolific in his native Reggio Emilia, where he left in a bronze tabernacle; and a monument of Bishop Rangone (Rangoni) in 1567, for which, after five years, he was handsomely paid 1250 gold scudi. He complete a monument for Bishop Filippo Zoboli (1554) in
San Nicolò of Reggio Emilia, which is flanked by grieving maidens.
Algarotti extolled him as the "
Correggio of sculpture". William Waters, less kindly, called his works "
some of the worst sculpture of the time..monstrous..and absurdity". For the
Cathedral of Reggio Emilia, he completed a
Christ with the Cross and statues of
St Grisanto and St Daria outside west door, while over the main portal, he had statues of a recumbent
Adam and Eve (1552–1557). He also completed statues of
Lepidus and Hercules at Modena, the statue of
St Procolo for the Volta tomb at
Bologna, and a recumbent Figure of
Alberto Pio del Carpi in the Louvre. ==Notes and sources==