ALESSANDRO ALLORI: MEDAL AND ITS ROLE IN THE PORTRAIT

The article focuses on the portrait concept associated with the early works of Alessandro Allori, a Florentine artist, during his studies in Agnolo Bronzino’s workshop, educational trip to Rome and the initial period of his independent work in Florence (1550s – 1560s). The depiction of medals, medallions and cameos all’antica, which the artist put in his models’ hands and made part of complex allegorical schemes, figures prominently in this concept. This feature makes him stand out from the older generation of Florentine court painters. The paper examines the reasons for Allori’s particular interest in medals, the specific ways to integrate them into the portrait, and their role in Florentine art of late Mannerism. The research findings suggest that Allori’s medal theme is directly linked to developing his mastery of ‘collector’s portrait’ that spread in Italian art in the second quarter of the 16th century in the wake of the growing interest in antiquity. Pseudo-antique medals became an original way for the artist to introduce the all’antica theme into Florentine portraiture, which then obtained the status of the ‘official’ political, cultural and artistic discourse of Cosimo I de’ Medici. Visually experienced and keen on traditional complex narratives of late Mannerism, Allori quickly moved from reproducing antique models to creating compositions all’antica. Allori’s eclectic approach to portraiture, which combined his working experience in Bronzino’s studio, his awareness of the Roman mannerist portraiture tradition and his study of ancient monuments, resulted in his own artistic style and becoming an independent master on the Florentine artistic scene, related to the Medici’s commissions.