Page - 134 - in Jacopo Strada and Cultural Patronage at the Imperial Court - The Antique as Innovation, Volume 1

Chapter 3134 Figures 3.37–3.38 Schloss Taufkirchen, acquired by Hans Jakob Fugger in 1554 and the Pflegehaus in Donauwörth, rebuilt by the Fugger from 1536 onward. 3.4 Architectural Patronage for the Fuggers: The Donauwörth Studiolo Fugger’s documented patronage of Strada is restricted to antiquarian and he- raldic materials. But Fugger’s commission of numismatic drawings can also be considered as artistic patronage: they are works of art in their own right. Because of his patronage Fugger was well placed to judge Strada’s competence in the field of design, of which his numismatic drawings provided excellent examples. Strada’s detailed reconstructions of the architectural reverses show that this included architectural and ornamental design. It would not be sur- prising if his patron sought to profit from this competence: thus Strada may have contributed to the refurbishment of the castle at Taufkirchen an der Vils, which soon after its acquisition in 1554 became Hans Jakob’s preferred country residence [Fig. 3.37].46 Because of Strada’s artistic background and his profound first-hand knowl- edge of avant-garde Italian architecture he would in all probability be con- sulted when his patron or members of his family and his immediate circle planned some artistic enterprise. One of these was the total reconstruction of the Pflegehaus at Donauwörth, acquired by Hans Jakob’s uncle and guard- ian Anton Fugger in 1536 and rebuilt and decorated in the following decade [Fig.  3.38]. The various decorative elements of the building, such as chimneypieces and wooden portals, all are in a consciously classical, architectonic manner; most of them appear to have been executed only in the mid-1540s [Figs. 3.40–3.45]. The most spectacular element among these is the wooden Stübchen, a small chamber or study constructed in wood, now in the Bayerisches Nationalmu- seum in Munich [Figs. 3.43–3.45]. Both the architectural conception and the 46 Too little appears to remain at Taufkirchen from Hans Jakob’s period to corroborate this supposition. On Taufkirchen, see Gsedl / Heilmaier / Kemper 2008.