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Among the specialists who made a decisive contribution to defining the decorative appearance of eighteenth-century interiors, stuccoworkers (plasterers) acquired a new importance. Their role alongside sculptors and painters in decorating total environments, from churches to palaces, was well-defined and helped to boost the position of the craft of stucco. Stuccowork provides the indispensable complement to the decorative finish in all kinds of spaces. The interiors of Palazzo Sagredo, the church of the Gesuiti, the Scuola Grande dei Carmini, the church of the Gesuati, and Ca' Zenobio are the most famous examples. Only rarely do signatures or documents provide us with the identity of these craftsmen who to a large extent remain anonymous. Two names come up most often: Abbondio Stazio and Carpoforo Mazzetti, who worked together.
The picture shows the gilded stucco decoration carried out by Abbondio Stazio and Carpoforo Mazzetti on the ceiling of the Sala Capitolare. Stucco putti frame the painting by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo depicting the Angel Holding Two Scrolls. This decoration stands out not only for its elegant modeling, but also as an example of the integration between sculptural and pictorial forms leading to harmonious results.
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