ABSTRACT
Ercole Procaccini returned to Bologna before 1565, becoming a major figure on the local artistic scene. Malvasia notes that he obtained commissions in the churches of San Benedetto, Santa Maria Maggiore, San Giacomo Maggiore, San Giovanni Battista dei Celestini, San Tommaso del Mercato, Santa Lucia, Sant’Agostino, San Giovanni in Monte and Santo Stefano. Procaccini was aware of the substantial organisational advantages provided by running a family business. Family workshops were established on the bond between relatives and characterised by the passing of technical expertise from fathers to sons, cousins or even more distant members of the family. Charles Dempsey understood the Accademia dei Desiderosi as new setting inspired by the Accademia del Disegno in Florence, insisting on the relation between art and theory in the formation of painters’ individual styles. Procaccini’s major effort in Lainate took place in the nymphaeum, a building designed by the Milanese architect Martino Bassi and characterised by amusing waterworks provided for the entertainment of visitors.
