ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the material-defying white terracotta compositions of Antonio Begarelli (1499–1565), a Modenese sculptor of clay who worked conceptually in marble. In response to Begarelli's terracotta sculpture, Michelangelo is quoted to have said: “If this clay were but marble, woe to the sculptures of antiquity.” Begarelli's white terracottas, created with white kaolin clay and lead paint, create monochromatic, uniform surfaces, as in the original appearance of his multi-figural Deposition now at San Francesco in Modena (1530–1531). Vasari attests to Begarelli's material association, writing that the artist added the “colour of marble to give the impression of real stone.” Michelangelo's reported favour, together with Vasari's material interpretations, imply a level of respect and status accorded to the medium and the Emilian artist, and speaks to a level of engagement with modern artistic and theological discourse that remains underacknowledged today. Rather than focus on the derogatory effect of comments such as “if this clay were but marble,” this contribution considers the conscious conceit revealed by Vasari's comment that reflects Antonio Begarelli's intentional interplay with perceived multimedia.
