Bernardo Buontalenti

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Bernardo Buontalenti

Italian stage designer

Also known as: Bernardo delle Girandole

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

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Byname:: Bernardo Delle Girandole (Fireworks)

Born:: 1536?, Florence [Italy]

Died:: June 25/26, 1608, Florence

Movement / Style:: Baroque art and architecture

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Bernardo Buontalenti (born 1536?, Florence [Italy]—died June 25/26, 1608, Florence) was a Florentine stage designer and theatre architect.

Buontalenti entered the service of the Medici as a youth and remained with them the rest of his life. In the Uffizi Palace, Florence, he built a great court stage, where, during the winter of 1585–86, splendid fetes were produced under his direction. For the Medici extravaganzas, he designed costumes of allegorical characters—nymphs, the planets, gods, dragons, cherubs; he constructed elaborate stage machinery for breathtaking effects; and he arranged spectacular firework displays. Buontalenti also designed palaces, gardens, fortresses, and villas and practiced military engineering. Important to scenic history are his extant drawings and engravings for intermezzi (i.e., interludes composed of pantomimes with madrigals) in 1589. A brilliant stage technician, he was one of the original innovators of the Baroque theatre and decorative arts.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.