Giovanni Lombardo de Patriarchi da Argegno, pittore e architetto

Despite some recent clarifications and new documentary evidence, Giovanni Lombardo de Patriarchi da Argegno has so far been considered only episodically and there is no satisfactory overall treatment of this French artist in Sforza and French Milan of the early Sixteenth Century. He was a member of a family of painters, like his father Giovanni (documented from 1434 to 1491) and uncle Paolo (documented 1434-1492), all so far without works attributed to them. He is documented in connection with some works of sculpture, ephemeral architecture and engineering, and in 1513 was appointed by Massimiliano Sforza as "architectum nostrum primarium ac comunis Mediolani", anticipating the roles that Francesco II Sforza bestowed on another painter, Bramantino, in 1525, and Antonio de Leyva, Governor of Milan, bestowed on Cesare Cesariano in 1528. Giovanni Lombardo therefore presents an interesting case-study with which to discuss some of the outstanding problems of Lombard architecture of the 15th and 16th centuries, for example, the role of the engineer and architect and the value that these terms assumed in the documents of the period for professional people engaged in other arts, and this can help us clarify their contributions to various projects despite the lack of specific documentation.