Prospero Fontana

Holy Family with the Infant St. John the Baptist, c. 1548–51, oil on panel. Prospero Fontana (1512–1597) was an Italian painter of late Renaissance and Mannerist art. He is perhaps best known for his frescoes and architectural detailing. The speed in which he completed paintings earned him commissions where he worked with other prominent artists of the period. In his later career Fontana trained younger painters, including his own daughter Lavinia.

Professional life Prospero Fontana was likely taught by Innocenzo di Pietro Francucci da Imola, but there is a degree of uncertainty surrounding the relationship between the two men. As a teenager, Fontana was an assistant on Perino del Vaga's Palazzo Doria in Genoa. However, art historians cannot definitively identity Fontana's contributions to the decorations.

Fontana worked with Giorgio Vasari on a few commissions, which are briefly described in the Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects. Vasari notes that Fontana was unable to complete his work on the Chateau of Fontainebleau (1560) in France due to a health issue. Finished collaborative work includes the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence (1563–1565). Florian Härb observes the similarities between several of Vasari's drawings and Fontana's larger paintings, which indicate that the drawings were the basis for much of Fontana's commissions. There are multiple explanations offered by Härb and Charles Davis, including Fontana's admiration of Vasari's style and prominence in Renaissance Italy.

In 1565, Fontana was elected to the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno in Florence. In 1576, Fontana was one of several artists and intellectuals consulted by Cardinal Gabriele Paleotti in the debate over the reformation of religious art.

Pellegrino Tabaldi and Fontana worked on the Cappella Poggi in S Giacomo Maggiore in Bologna.

Towards the end of his career, Fontana opened a school of art in Bologna. Some of his most notable students were Ludovico Carracci, Agostino Carracci, Lorenzo Sabbatini, and Denys Calvaert. In Bologna, Fontana served as an arbitrator and resolved professional disputes. Robert W. Gaston explains that this was a prestigious position at the time.

Style Fontana was well known for the speed in which he completed commissions. Carlo Cesare Malvasia criticized him for being careless and unprofessional. He is an early representative of the Bolognese school of painting. His style has been compared to that of Paolo Veronese.

Major works

Holy Family with the Infant Saint John the Baptist, 1545, oil on canvas — Church of Santa Maria del Baraccano, Bologna Beata Diana Andalò professing with Saint Dominic, 1545, oil on panel — San Domenico, Bologna Disputa di Santa Caterina, 1551, oil on panel, 361 x 178 cm — Santa Maria del Baraccano, Bologna Julius III, 1553, oil on panel — Biblioteca Universitaria, Bologna

Personal life Prospero's father, Silvio Fontana, was a stonemason.

Prospero married Antonia de Bonardis in 1539. They had two daughters, Emilia and Lavinia. Emilia died in 1568, just five years after her wedding to Floriano Bertelli. Prospero taught his surviving daughter Lavinia how to paint in his workshop.