ABSTRACT
In 1672, Giovan Pietro Bellori published Le vite de’ pittori scultori et architetti, a dozen lengthy biographies of the most important modern painters, sculptors, and architects. His decision to include Barocci among the chosen 12 is surprising. The artist certainly was worthy of the tribute, but he was hardly modern when the book appeared, 60 years after Barocci’s death. Therefore, Bellori’s vita of Barocci, which contains the fullest account of the painter’s career, must be read with caution. One of Bellori’s claims will be examined in this essay, which aspires not to offer new facts but to put them together in a way that might broaden our thinking about Barocci and the business of art.
