When and where did Mannerism begin? Using the Allegory painting by Bronzino as an example, discuss the characteristics of the Mannerist style.  

What will be an ideal response?

Scholars date the end of the High Renaissance with the death of Raphael in 1520. One of the artistic trends that emerged is known as Mannerism, from the Italian maniera, meaning "style" or "stylishness." Agnolo Bronzino's bizarre Allegory illustrates some of the fascinating and unsettling characteristics of Mannerism. In an allegory, figures and objects have symbolic meanings. But the allegory in Bronzino's painting is obscure and difficult for scholars to reconstruct. This fondness for elaborate or obscure subject matter is typical of Mannerist artists. Also typical is the "forbidden" erotic undercurrent. Bronzino employs mythological mother and son subjects, Venus and Cupid, but presents their interaction as suggestively erotic. The elongated figures and twisting S-shaped poses are part of the Mannerist repertoire, as is the illogical, shallow picture space filled with people. This painting is an extreme example of the highly artificial and self-conscious aspect of Mannerist art.