Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects

The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects is a famous book written by an Italian artist named Giorgio Vasari in the 1500s. This book is a collection of stories about many great painters, sculptors, and architects from the past. It is very important because it is one of the earliest and most read books about art history.

Vasari first published his book in 1550, and then he updated it in 1568. In the second version, he talked more about artists from Venice, though many people think he focused too much on artists from his own city, Florence. His book helped people learn about the lives and works of many famous artists and changed how we think about art.

Today, The Lives is still very well-known and is considered one of the most influential books about art from the Italian Renaissance. It was the first important book ever written about art history, making Vasari a key figure in understanding and sharing the stories of great artists.

Background

Paolo Giovio wanted to write about artists but asked Giorgio Vasari for help instead. Vasari wrote The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, the first big book about art history. It came out in Florence in 1550 and was later updated in 1568.

Vasari loved talking about artists from his home city, Florence, and often talked less about artists from other places like Venice. Even though he visited Venice for the second edition, he still focused more on Florence. His book includes fun stories about artists, but some details might not be completely true. Even with some mistakes, the book is still very important for learning about art during the Renaissance in Italy.

Influence

Vasari's Vite has been called the most important book about artists from the Renaissance period. It has influenced many people who write about art and artists. The book has been translated into many languages, including Dutch, English, French, German, Polish, Russian, and Spanish.

The Vite helped shape how people think about the Renaissance, especially the roles of Florence and Rome. It has also been a key source of information about early Renaissance artists from Italy, even though it focuses mostly on artists from Florence and Rome and less on artists from other parts of Italy and Europe.

Contents of the 1568 edition

The Vite includes stories about many important Italian artists and is often used as a guide for learning their names, which can sometimes be spelled differently. Below is the full list of artists in the second edition from 1568. In a few cases, short biographies are grouped together in one section.

Volumes and parts

The 1568 edition was published in three volumes. Vasari split the biographies into three parts. Parts I and II are in the first volume. Part III is in the last two volumes.

Vol. 1 (= parts I and II)

Vol. 1 (= parts I and II),  

title page variant

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Vol. 2 (first volume of part III)

• .pdf?page=5)

  Vol. 3 (second volume of part III)

Volume 1

The first volume begins with a new message to Cosimo I de' Medici and another to Pope Pius V. It includes a list of names and objects mentioned, and a list of places and buildings with references to where they appear in the book. These lists help readers use the book easily and are still used as examples in art history books today. After these lists, there is a long letter by Florentine historian Giovanni Battista Adriani to Vasari about the history of art. The main part of the volume starts with a preface, followed by an introduction about the background, materials, and techniques of architecture, sculpture, and painting. Another preface comes next, introducing the actual "Vite".

Biographies, first part

Biographies, second part

Volume 2

Biographies, third part

Volume 3

Biographies, third part (continued)

Editions

There have been many editions and translations of the Lives over the years. The first English translation was done by Eliza Foster in 1850-51, which helped many English readers learn about the book for the first time. It stayed popular throughout the 1800s. The most recent English translation was made by Peter and Julia Conaway Bondanella in 1991. Today, there is a detailed Italian version edited by Rosanna Bettarini and Paola Barocchi.

Unabridged Annotated English Translations

There are several complete English translations of this famous book. Eliza Foster, writing as "Mrs. Jonathan Foster," published one version through Henry George Bohn between 1850 and 1851. It had six volumes and was mostly a paraphrase. Later, Louisa S. Maclehose worked with Gerard Baldwin Brown on a part called "On Technique," published by J. M. Dent & Company in 1907. Gaston du C. De Vere also did a ten-volume translation, released by Macmillan & Company and the Medici Society from 1912 to 1914.

Versions online

Italian

• 1550 edition Progetto Manuzio (PDF)
• 1550 edition Selections drawn from a 1768 reprint
• 1568 edition, Vol. 1 (biographies from Cimabue to Signorelli)
• 1568 edition, Vol. 2
• 1568 edition, Vol. 3

English

• [Giorgio Vasari's Lives of the Artists]( Website created by Adrienne DeAngelis. Currently incomplete, intended to be unabridged
• [Stories of the Italian Artists from Vasari]( Translated by E. L. Seeley, 1908, abridged