The recreation of Giulio Romano’s designs

After recording in high-resolution three rooms at Palazzo Te, Factum Foundation and Factum Arte worked with Fondazione Palazzo Te on recreating five designs by Giulio Romano as physical objects for the exhibition ‘Giulio Romano. La forza delle cose’. Curated by Barbara Furlotti and Guido Rebecchini, the show focused on the artist’s talent and ingenuity in object design – both for leisure and war.

© Oscar Parasiego for Factum Foundation

Detailed exchanges of letters document Ercole and Ferrante Gonzaga’s interest in silverware, and many pieces of their collections were designed by Giulio Romano, who was the official artist at the Gonzaga’s court. The artist had no training in metalworking, and therefore several of his designs, while looking almost effortless on paper, were very complex and often challenging to produce.

None of these objects have survived today, and Factum Foundation, in collaboration with Factum Arte’s 3D team, made physical recreations inspired by a selection of drawings:

A vase all’antica
A pair of tongs
A salt cellar
An ewer in the shape of a sea monster
An ewer made for Ercole Gonzaga

The intricate designs were rematerialised as elaborate 3D models by Irene Gaumé, Jordi Garcia and Manuel Franquelo at Factum Arte, before being 3D printed in sections and cast in a variety of materials depending on the size and complexity of the details.

Installation view ‘Giulio Romano. La forza delle cose’, Palazzo Te di Mantova, foto Gian Maria Pontiroli © Fondazione Palazzo Te

All’antica vase

silver-plated brass
528 x 400 x 350 mm

This design appears on the walls of the Chamber of Cupid and Psyche, and in an etching within the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum (published by Agostino Veneziano in 1531). The definition of all’antica (‘in the manner of the ancients’) refers to a design in the style and principles of the classical past.

The vase was rematerialised in brass at Fademesa Foundry, and gilded in silver at Factum Arte.

Detail of the vase all’antica within the frescoes of the Chamber of Cupid and Psyche. Foto: Gianmaria Pontiroli © Fondazione Palazzo Te

Process of 3D modeling the All’antica vase © Factum Arte

Process of 3D modeling the All’antica vase © Factum Arte

3D model of the All’antica vase © Factum Arte

3D model of the All’antica vase © Factum Arte

3D print of the All’antica vase and its disassembled sections © Factum Foundation

Pair of tongs

pewter
70 x 260 mm

This pair of tableware tongs was one of the most complex designs to conceive in 3D as the team also needed to focus on its functionality. After trying various configurations for the scale of the object and the positioning of the hidden adjusting screw, each section was cast in pewter and assembled at Calser Peltrex 98, in Badajoz. Pewter is a malleable alloy of tin, antimony and copper that has been widely used for tableware since the Egyptians, and was often silver-plated.

3D model of the ‘pinza’ – closed © Irene Gaumé for Factum Arte

3D model of the ‘pinza’ – open © Irene Gaumé for Factum Arte

Installation view ‘Giulio Romano. La forza delle cose’, Palazzo Te di Mantova, foto Gian Maria Pontiroli © Fondazione Palazzo Te

Salt cellar

silver-plated brass
188 x 225 x 225 mm

The elaborate design, featuring small goats and an ornate lid, was made at Esfinge Foundry in Madrid.

Giulio Romano, Progetto per saliera ca. 1537 – 1546, Penna e inchiostro bruno, acquerellato, pietra nera, stilo, 181 x 219 mm Londra, The Courtauld © The Courtauld / Bridgeman Images