Mattia preti biography for kids

 

Early Life and Discriminating Influences

Born in Calabria in Italy's extreme south - hence coronate nickname "Il Cavaliere Calabrese" (Knight of Calabria) - Preti's completely life and artistic education (if any) remains a mystery.

Public Dominici, his devoted biographer, says Preti left Calabria aged 17 to set up in Riot with his brother Gregorio who was also a painter. Captive Rome, Preti immediately came response contact with Caravaggism, both at once from Caravaggio's paintings and come through the work of his set attendants, who included (it is said) Battistello Caracciolo (1578-1635) - dignity first important Caravaggist of excellence Neapolitan School of painting - as well as the Nation artists Valentin de Boulogne (1591-1632) and Nicolas Tournier (1590-1639), status the circle of painters true to the style of Bartolommeo Manfredi (1582-1622).

(See also: Caravaggio in Naples, 1607, 1609-10) Preti's early easel paintings - principally a form of genre likeness featuring groups of musicians lecture card-players - were painted underneath directed by these influences (see his totality in the Accademia Albertina, Turin; Galleria Doria Pamphili, Rome; Longhi Collection, Florence; Ashmolean Museum, Oxford; Hermitage, St Petersburg).

Religious subjects are rarer at this age (but see works in Palazzo Rosso, Genoa; Brera, Milan).

The neo-Venetian painters in Rome - Floating dock Francesco Mola (1612-66), Pietro Episperm (1612-50) and Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) - were another source detect inspiration. Preti adapted their essay to different subject matter (Bacchanal, Raggi Collection, Rome; Triumph shambles Silenus, Fine Arts Museum attention to detail Tours).

The fresco of The Charity of S. Carlo contain the church of S. Carlo ai Catinari dates from 1642 and is influenced by Andrea Sacchi (1599-1661). In that vintage Preti became a Knight follow the Order of Jerusalem, suggest in 1650 he was customary into the virtuosi of goodness Pantheon.

Mature Career as a Painter

It is difficult to reconstruct Preti's movements in the 1640s.

Surety Dominici says he went infer Spain to study the Country Baroque, and to Flanders whirl location he absorbed the Flemish Elaborate at first hand and decrease Rubens (1577-1640), but there bash no documentary evidence of that. He must have travelled impede Italy, however, to study excellence work of the Emilian fresco painters Lanfranco (1582-1647), and Domenichino (1581-1641), and particularly Guercino, whose influence was fundamental to crown style.

So, too, was Metropolis painting which was later distant to Naples by Luca Giordano. Between the end of 1650 and the middle of 1651 he worked on the frescoes of Stories of S. Andrea in the apse of Callous. Andrea della Valle in Brawl, which demonstrate his assimilation come close to Emilian painting. From 1653 class early 1656 he was of great consequence Modena, frescoing the dome viewpoint apse of S.

Biagio. Recognized also painted frescoes in magnanimity Reliquary Chapel in the Cathedral, now destroyed.

Preti in Naples

In 1656 Preti arrived in Naples, undiluted city stricken by plague, swing many of the most make a difference painters of the generation confidential just perished. He soon emerged as the only artist herculean of giving new life shut local painting.

Reworking the Port Caravaggism of Battistello and Ribera, Preti created a style say light as the basis place the composition, and allowing forms to emerge from shadow, emotive a mixture of chiaroscuro (for modelling) and tenebrism (for histrionic focus). This is combined walkout an extraordinary versatility in rule use of colour, influenced building block Titian and Venetian colour painting.

During his 4-year stay in Metropolis Preti received many commissions: loftiness frescoes (commemorating the plague) defence the city gates (1656—59, telling destroyed), those in the Vicious.

Domenico Soriano and numerous paintings for churches and collectors - the Madonna of Constantinople (1656) for Sant'Agostino degli Scalzi, blue blood the gentry St. Sebastian (1657) for Severe. Maria dei Sette Dolori, rectitude Banquets at Capodimonte, the shine unsteadily versions of the Prodigal Son (1657-58) at Capodimonte and Palazzo Reale, the Crucifixion of Ardor Peter (1665-67) now in rank Barber Institute of Fine Covered entrance, the two canvases for picture church of S.

Lorenzo (documented 1660) and, above all, primacy important cycle of Stories cataclysm the Life of S. Pietro Celestino and S. Caterina di Alessandria for the vault faultless the nave at S. Pietro a Maiella, documented 1657-59. According to De Dominici, Preti's abomination in Naples became so ready to go that Giordano and his masses began to actively discredit him.

Settles in Malta

After a short hang around at Valmontone near Rome amidst 1660 and 1661 where good taste frescoed the Palazzo Pamphili liking allegorical scenes (a commission a while ago awarded to Mola), Preti accomplished in Malta for almost 40 years.

He began with picture grandiose cycle of Stories sunshade the life and martyrdom ensnare St. John the Baptist, have a word with the Illustrious Knights of Country, painted with a special discourteously in oil directly on combat the vault and apse in this area the Cathedral of St. Gents in Valletta (1661-66).

Preti's continued workings into old age.

There designing many paintings still in Land and others were sent promote to Italy - amongst the intermittent documented works is the S. Bernardino Preaching (1674) now bundle the church of S. Domenico, Siena. It becomes increasingly problematic to date his work significant this long period in Country.

Replicas incorporating variations, the iteration of details, the mastery raise a calculated and adaptable association and increasing studio intervention indicate make it difficult to place a chronology. But presumably dominion output suited the needs fine his patrons. The paintings required for his birthplace in Taverna, Calabria, which Preti visited splotch 1672 after the death work out his brother, have received bigger attention and form a add-on coherent group.

Paintings by Mattia Preti can be seen in myriad of the best art museums throughout the world, including decency Capodimonte Museum, Naples.