ZUCCARO, Federico
(b. ca. 1542, Sant'Angelo in Vado, d. 1609, Ancona)

Scenes from the Life of the Artist's Family

1579
Fresco
Casa Zuccari, Florence

This scene is part of the decoration of the Sala Terrena in the Casa Zuccari, Florence.

It is characteristic of Zuccari's self-confidence that the artistic and intellectual effort he invested in designing his own home was comparable to that which he expended on the residences of those who commissioned his work. Like Vasari, he owned two homes, and he emulated Vasari's model first in Florence and then in Rome. In his case, art historical ideas first came into play in the Roman house; in Florence just one scene relates to everyday life in the artist's household, and the other frescoes depict fables and allegories.

Pure genre scenes like the view of the Zuccari family's daily life in the artist's Florentine house are extremely rare in the monumental form of fresco decorations in the sixteenth century. Comparable scenes are, however, regularly found as elements of landscapes or grotesques.