Crossroads of artistic creation: the Procaccini family in Milan

The paper investigates the Procaccini’s family relocation from Bologna to Milan. One of the most important families of painters active in Northern Italy at the start of the seventeenth century, the Procaccini established a family business that played a fundamental role in the development of Lombard art. By looking at recent studies in the field of socio-economic history, the study describes Milan as a microcosm of international influences, offering a perspective on the city’s connections with Flanders and Spain. Aside from demonstrating that the Procaccini consciously elected to move to a more dynamic city, the study emphasises that Milan was involved in the largest program of Post-Tridentine diocesan reform ever enacted in Italy. The city had the largest diocese in Italy and one of the largest in Europe, counting over 2000 churches and 200 monasteries. From 1580 onwards, many of these buildings were renovated, presenting opportunities for capable artists. The Procaccini took advantage of this situation easily superseding local competition. Throughout the past few decades, the lives of Camillo, Carlo Antonio and Giulio Cesare Procaccini have been analysed separately, overlooking the mutual dynamics that characterise, in this particular case, the interactions between family members. Notwithstanding the fact that progress has been made, the stories of the Procaccini brothers are still pieces of the same puzzle, which has yet to be completed. To this end, a comprehensive approach to the study of their interlaced careers seems historically necessary, the means to unravelling the dynamics of their life stories and illuminating both the business strategy and the professional organisation that allowed them to develop the most successful Milanese workshop of the Borromean era.