SCULTORI Adamo

(Mantua 1530 ca. – Rome 1587)

Adamo Scultori was an Italian engraver born in Mantua around 1530. For a long time, he was called Ghisi o ‘il Mantovano’, because he was believed to be the younger brother of Giorgio Ghisi. Instead he was son of Giovanni Battista Scultori and brother of Diana, both draftsmen and engravers in turn. Premature artist, he was probably trained by his father. He first worked in Mantua, taking inspiration from the works of Giulio Romano and, after this latter’s death, in Rome.
One of his most famous works is the series of 72 engravings reproducing the minor figures painted by Michelangelo in the frescoes of the vault in the Sistine Chapel. Note that the incisions once showed many differences compared to the painted subjects we can see today. This depends on the fact that the prints of Adamo were directly derived from Michelangelo’s preparatory drawings and not from the definitive frescoes, which probably underwent several modifications at the papal request.
In addition to Michelangelo, Adamo Scultori made engravings derived from other important artists such as Sebastiano del Piombo and Andrea Mantegna.