Orlandi, Pellegrino Antonio

Date born: 1660

Place Born: Bologna, Italy

Date died: 1727

Place died: Bologna, Italy

Writer and historian of Italian artists and painting. Orlandi was a member of the Carmelite order and lived at the Bolongese convent of San Martino, where he collected paintings and prints. Orlandi's art historical research earned him membership in the Bolognese Accademia Clementina. In 1704, he published the Abecedario pittorico, the first collection of artists biographies organized alphabetically in Italian. The book's second edition was published in 1719. Orlandi corresponded with artists and collectors in Rome and Florence to obtain updated information for the new edition, which elevated the Abecedario's status from a collection of biographies to a handbook about art and artistic practices. The book included bibliographies on books about artists as well as information about history, mythology, and poetry. In this sense, it constitutes one of the earliest art bibliographies every written.  During the 19^th century, the Abecedario was criticized for its inaccuracy by Giuseppe Campori, however, it was the most complete resource for information on artists during the 18^th century. LMW

Home Country: Italy

Sources:  Sorensen, Lee.  "Art Bibliographies: A Survey of their Development, 1595-1821." Library Quarterly 56 (January 1986) pp. 31-55; The Dictionary of Art

Bibliography: Notizie degli scrittori bolognesi e dell' opere loro stampate e manoscritte. Bologna: Costantino Pisarri, 1714;  Abecedario pittorico nel quale compendiosamente sono descritte le patrie, i maestri, ed i tempi, ne' quali fiorino, circa quattro mila professori di pittura, di scultura e d'architettura.  Bologna:  Const. Pisari, 1704.