Antonio Cavallucci
Encyclopedia
Antonio Cavallucci was an Italian
painter of the late Baroque
.
in the Lazio. His artistic talents were recognized in an early stage by Francesco Caetani
, Duke of Sermoneta in 1738-1810. In 1765, he brought the 13 year old Cavallucci to Rome, where he became a pupil of Stefano Pozzi
and three years later of Gaetano Lapis
. He also studied drawing at the Accademia di San Luca
(c. 1769-1771).
His earliest work dates from the mid-1760s. It is a tempera
frieze
in the Casa Cavallucci in Sermoneta. His first portrait was of his benefactor Duke Francesco Caetani. This portrait is only preserved as an engraving
in 1772 by Pietro Leone Bombelli (1737–1809).
His first major commission was the decoration of five audience chambers in the Caetani Palace in Rome in 1776. He painted mythological scenes and allegories
appropriate for each room.
In the early 1780s he painted mostly portraits, such as those of Francesco Caetani and Teresa Corsini, Duchess of Sermoneta.
The Origin of Music (1786) is probably the most important painting of his mid-career. It was based on the illustrations in the book Iconologia (1593) from Cesare Ripa
.
The commissions kept coming under his new patron, Cardinal Romualdo Braschi-Onesti (1753–1817), nephew of the pope Pius VI. He has painted the portraits of his new benefactor and of the pope in 1788.
He was inducted into the Accademia di San Luca
in 1786, Academy of Arcadia
in 1788, and the Congregazione dei Virtuosi al Pantheon in 1788.
He is said to have painted St Benedict Joseph Labre
while the saint was in ecstasy, or (as is perhaps more plausible), having seen the saint in ecstasy, to have brought him to his studio and painted his portrait there. In later years he worked for Cardinal Francesco Saverio Zelada, decorating his titular church San Martino ai Monti
in Rome. Cavallucci died in Rome in 1795.
He was influenced by Pompeo Batoni
and Anton Raphael Mengs
. There is in his art some of the northern European feeling that had made its way into Rome at the end of the eighteenth century. The Portuguese painter Domingos Sequeira
was one of his pupils.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
painter of the late Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
.
Biography
Cavallucci was born in SermonetaSermoneta
Sermoneta is a hill town and comune in the province of Latina , central Italy.It is a walled hill town, with a 13th-century Romanesque cathedral called Cathedral of S. Maria Assunta and a massive castle, built by the Caetani family. The Cistercian Valvisciolo Abbey is located nearby...
in the Lazio. His artistic talents were recognized in an early stage by Francesco Caetani
Caetani
Caetani, or Gaetani, is the name of an Italian noble family princely family which played a great part in the history of Pisa and of Rome, principally via their close links to the papacy.-Origins:...
, Duke of Sermoneta in 1738-1810. In 1765, he brought the 13 year old Cavallucci to Rome, where he became a pupil of Stefano Pozzi
Stefano Pozzi
Stefano Pozzi was an Italian painter, designer, draughtsman and decorator whose career was spent largely in Rome....
and three years later of Gaetano Lapis
Gaetano Lapis
Gaetano Lapis was an Italian painter of the late-Baroque period.He was born in Cagli and trained under Sebastiano Conca. He painted a Birth of Venus for the ceiling of the Palazzo Borghese in Rome.-References:...
. He also studied drawing at the Accademia di San Luca
Accademia di San Luca
The Accademia di San Luca, was founded in 1577 as an association of artists in Rome, under the directorship of Federico Zuccari, with the purpose of elevating the work of "artists", which included painters, sculptors and architects, above that of mere craftsmen. Other founders included Girolamo...
(c. 1769-1771).
His earliest work dates from the mid-1760s. It is a tempera
Tempera
Tempera, also known as egg tempera, is a permanent fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigment mixed with a water-soluble binder medium . Tempera also refers to the paintings done in this medium. Tempera paintings are very long lasting, and examples from the 1st centuries AD still exist...
frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
in the Casa Cavallucci in Sermoneta. His first portrait was of his benefactor Duke Francesco Caetani. This portrait is only preserved as an engraving
Engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
in 1772 by Pietro Leone Bombelli (1737–1809).
His first major commission was the decoration of five audience chambers in the Caetani Palace in Rome in 1776. He painted mythological scenes and allegories
Allegory
Allegory is a demonstrative form of representation explaining meaning other than the words that are spoken. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation...
appropriate for each room.
In the early 1780s he painted mostly portraits, such as those of Francesco Caetani and Teresa Corsini, Duchess of Sermoneta.
The Origin of Music (1786) is probably the most important painting of his mid-career. It was based on the illustrations in the book Iconologia (1593) from Cesare Ripa
Cesare Ripa
Cesare Ripa was an Italian aesthetician who worked for Cardinal Anton Maria Salviati as a cook and butler.Little is known about his life. He was born in Perugia and died in Rome. After the death of the cardinal, Ripa worked for his relatives...
.
The commissions kept coming under his new patron, Cardinal Romualdo Braschi-Onesti (1753–1817), nephew of the pope Pius VI. He has painted the portraits of his new benefactor and of the pope in 1788.
He was inducted into the Accademia di San Luca
Accademia di San Luca
The Accademia di San Luca, was founded in 1577 as an association of artists in Rome, under the directorship of Federico Zuccari, with the purpose of elevating the work of "artists", which included painters, sculptors and architects, above that of mere craftsmen. Other founders included Girolamo...
in 1786, Academy of Arcadia
Academy of Arcadia
The Academy of Arcadia or Academy of Arcadians was an Italian literary academy founded in Rome in 1690.-History:...
in 1788, and the Congregazione dei Virtuosi al Pantheon in 1788.
He is said to have painted St Benedict Joseph Labre
Benedict Joseph Labre
Saint Benedict Joseph Labré was a French mendicant, Franciscan tertiary and Roman Catholic saint.-Life:He was born in Amettes, near Arras in the north of France, the eldest of fifteen children of a prosperous shopkeeper, and was religious from a very early age. He was noted for performing public...
while the saint was in ecstasy, or (as is perhaps more plausible), having seen the saint in ecstasy, to have brought him to his studio and painted his portrait there. In later years he worked for Cardinal Francesco Saverio Zelada, decorating his titular church San Martino ai Monti
San Martino ai Monti
San Martino ai Monti, also known as Santi Silvestro e Martino ai Monti - Titolo Equizio, is a basilica church in Rome, Italy, in the Rione Monti neighbourhood.-History:...
in Rome. Cavallucci died in Rome in 1795.
He was influenced by Pompeo Batoni
Pompeo Batoni
Pompeo Girolamo Batoni was an Italian painter whose style incorporated elements of the French Rococo, Bolognese classicism, and nascent Neoclassicism.-Biography:He was born in Lucca, the son of a goldsmith, Paolino Batoni...
and Anton Raphael Mengs
Anton Raphael Mengs
Anton Raphael Mengs was a German painter, active in Rome, Madrid and Saxony, who became one of the precursors to Neoclassical painting.- Biography :Mengs was born in 1728 at Ústí nad Labem in Bohemia...
. There is in his art some of the northern European feeling that had made its way into Rome at the end of the eighteenth century. The Portuguese painter Domingos Sequeira
Domingos Sequeira
Domingos António de Sequeira , was a Portuguese painter.-Biography:He was born in Belém, Lisbon, into a modest family. He later changed his family name from Espírito Santo to the more aristocratic Sequeira...
was one of his pupils.
Selected works
- Abigail before David (1773)
- Departure of Hector and Andromache (1773)
- Crucifixion with Saints (1773)
- Presentation of the Virgin (1786) in the Cathedral of SpoletoCathedral of SpoletoSpoleto Cathedral is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Spoleto-Norcia created in 1821, previously that of the diocese of Spoleto, and the principal church of the Umbrian city of Spoleto, in Italy...
- Thomas of Cori (levitation) (1786), Eucharistic museum of Hieron, Paray-le-Monial, France
- Venus with Ascanius, at the Palazzo Cesarini in RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
- Investiture of St Bona(1791), Cathedral of Pisa
- Principe del Belvedere (1793), Gallerie di Capodimonte, Naples
- St. Elias and the Purgatory (1793) S. Martino ai Monti, RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
- Altar piece in the Church of San Nicolò in CataniaCataniaCatania is an Italian city on the east coast of Sicily facing the Ionian Sea, between Messina and Syracuse. It is the capital of the homonymous province, and with 298,957 inhabitants it is the second-largest city in Sicily and the tenth in Italy.Catania is known to have a seismic history and...
, Sicily - St Francis announces the Pardon to the people in the Chapel of St Diego d’Alcalà in the Basilica of Santa Maria degli AngeliBasilica of Santa Maria degli AngeliThe Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli is a church situated in the plain at the foot of the hill of Assisi, Italy, in the frazione of Santa Maria degli Angeli....
in Assisi.