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How did Rosso Fiorentino decorate the Gallery of Francis I at Fontainebleau?
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Francis I
King Francis I of France, portrait by Pierre Dumonstier, after a drawing by Jean Clouet; in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris.
At the palace of Fontainebleau, Rosso Fiorentino decorated the Gallery of Francis I between approximately 1534 and 1537. Working in collaboration with Francesco Primaticcio, Rosso initiated an intricate decorative system that served as a plastic realization of the late Raphaelesque manner.12
The gallery is a long, narrow space featuring a wooden ceiling and a high dado made of carved walnut. Above this dado, Rosso implemented a richly luxuriant complex that combined painting with stucco relief sculpture. This elaborate system of painted narratives, surrounded by convoluted strapwork, elegant figures, and stucco swags, established an ornamental style that exerted a significant influence on the decorative arts throughout northern Europe.321