Donato Bramante is an outstanding architect of the Italian Renaissance

Donato di Pascuccio d'Antonio (1444-1514), better known as Donato Bramante, belongs to the great masters of the Renaissance. Born under the bright sun and the blue sky of Italy, who, from childhood, were familiar with the best monuments of Antiquity, they created not just great works of art, but a whole historical epoch.

Beginning of creativity

Donato, who grew up in the family of a peasant in the duchy of Urbino, first studied painting and achieved success in a fashionable wall painting at that time, creating the illusion of additional space. But already in his childhood, according to his biographer Giorgio Vasari, he was fond of geometry and did mathematical calculations for the construction of buildings.

Despite the popularity of Donato Bramante, his biography is far from complete. Information about the early works of the architect is very scarce, it is known only that he traveled a lot, performing minor orders in Urbino, Bergamo, Mantua, Florence and other Italian cities. The main result of these wanderings was experience and knowledge, which were formed not only in the process of work, but also under the influence of meetings with outstanding masters of that time.

In the circle of great

The work of Bramante was influenced by the famous architects, artists and sculptors of Italy: Filippo Brunelleschi, Ercole de Robert, Andrea Mantegna and others. Of great importance to Donato was the meeting with Leonardo da Vinci, with whom he closely communicated. But it happened later, when Bramante already became a recognized master. Together with Leonardo, he worked on the architectural problems of the design of the lantern - a special superstructure on the dome of buildings, which not only served as a decorative function, but also served as lighting and ventilation.

Painting

The first period of the artist's work was associated with painting, although even then Bramante sketches and sketches of ancient ruins and draws sketches and blueprints of buildings.

The only surviving painting works of the master is "Christ at the Column" - painting on wood in the Abbey of Chiaravalle, near Milan. The artist managed to create a very realistic and tragic image, which has a strong emotional impact on the viewer. The painting itself demonstrates Donato Bramante's artistic technique - creating an illusion of vast space.

The artistic design of the interiors always attracted Donato more than the story-painting, and his technique of depicting the architectural space influenced the work of such Italian artists as Ambrogio Bergogne, Bernardo Zenale and others.

But the passion for architecture was stronger, and in the 80s the master devoted himself entirely to this area. Cardinal Ascanio Sforza drew attention to Donato Bramante, whose work had already become known, and invited him to Milan.

Church of Santa Maria Press San Saniro

This is the first completely independent Bramante building. It was built in the XI century, but the master completely re-planned and rebuilt the building, creating a project of a completely new construction together with the famous Giovanni Amadeo.

The church is built in the traditions of the early Florentine Renaissance, but new trends are already felt, as well as the love of Donato Bramante to the ancient architecture.

The interior decoration of the church, especially Sanskrit (places in the altar, where the garments of priests and utensils are kept), also belongs to Bramante. Here you can clearly see the manner of the artist specializing in interior painting. The lack of space did not allow to make full-fledged choruses in the church, and the architect by means of painting created the illusion of a large space and painted choruses on one of the walls.

Already in the design of his first architectural work, Donato showed himself to be an excellent designer.

Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie

Art critics refer to the most beautiful buildings of the Italian Renaissance. Initially, the church was built in accordance with the canons of Gothic, but Bramante made significant changes to its architecture, for example the triple apse and the portico with columns in the Corinthian style. Such unexpected for the Gothic building additions made this church a completely unique architectural structure.

In the work on this project, the commonwealth of the two greatest masters of the Italian Renaissance was manifested. Leonardo da Vinci wrote a medallion depicting Madonna over the entrance to the church. And as a token of gratitude to the famous patron next to the Virgin Mary, he placed the figures of Ludovic Sforza and his wife.

The Roman period of creativity

In September 1499, Milan captured French troops, and Bramante went to Rome, where Pope Julius II appointed him to the post of chief architect of the Vatican.

Under the leadership of Donato Bramante, the arcades of several churches are built, he creates a huge courtyard of the Belvedere, decorates the palace of the Cancellery, participates in the construction of the court palace and in the design of St. Peter's Basilica. But the peak of his work is not these colossal structures, but a miniature chapel.

Tempietto in San Pietro in Montorio

This small round rotunda, erected where the apostle Peter was crucified, is considered one of the best creations that the architects of Italy created during the Renaissance.

Tempietto is very harmonious and, one might say, ideal in terms of architectural form. Unfortunately, because of the tightness of the courtyard of the Dominican monastery, it is difficult to take a picture of the chapel in the proper perspective, so no photograph conveys its beauty.

The interior design of the rotunda was also made according to the Bramante project. And here his talent as an architect and painter was fully manifested.

Donato Bramante died on April 11, 1514 in Rome, and not having completed the most ambitious work of his life - the project of St. Peter's Basilica. The role of this outstanding artist in the formation of Renaissance architecture is no less significant than the contribution of Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael to painting and Michelangelo in sculpture.