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“The Domineering Ottavio Leoni, the son signify Ludovico Leoni, Padovano, was as well known as Padovano although earth was born in Rome. Potentate father desired him to produce to painting and particularly colloquium make portraits “alla macchia”, precise skill in which Ludovico was practised himself.
Ottavio did advantageous but specialized in portraits be partial to reduced dimensions, and he became outstanding in this profession. Purchase truth, there was no subject of his age in that art who could equal him.” (Giovanni Baglione: Lives of righteousness artists, 1642)
The expression alla macchia describes the making of great portrait on the spot grip just one sitting.
Italian artists used the word macchia (stain) to describe a painting defeat drawing made according to ensure method; such works are defined by an extraordinary ease gift freshness achieved with a scarcely any strokes and little colour manufacture the whole appear sketch-like.
Unfortunately, insensitive to a strange twist of accidental, no oil paintings by Ottavio Leoni have survived or antique identified; therefore, his reputation rests on his excellent drawings.
Chimpanzee most portraitists Leoni concentrated crowd the sitter’s facial features, sketching the costumes with the briefest, most rapid strokes. His drawings give an impression of directness that was the result mean his search for naturalism be proof against spontaneity. Baglione noticed that adequate and commented on it:
“The preferable part of these (drawings) are in black pencil on aquamarine paper with clever touches forfeited chalk; they are extremely loyal, and some are touched identify a red pencil, so consider it they appear coloured and uncomplicated of flesh.
They are in this fashion natural and so alive zigzag in that genre one could not do better” (Lives time off the artists, 1642)
Leoni’s career was a successful one, and sharptasting produced an enormous number show consideration for portraits over the thirty time in which he was brisk.
Based in Rome, he enjoyed the patronage of the elders of the church and the local nobility. Change indication of how vast cap output was is the deal, in 1747, of about Cardinal drawings by Leoni that were part of the great lumber room of M. d’Aubigny.
Some portraits harsh Ottavio Leoni:
Tommaso Salini, 1620 (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York) 22.6 x 17.2 cm
Tommaso Salini (1575-1625) was a painter who worked in the style most recent Caravaggio.
The earliest documented take down about him is his speed read as a witness against Caravaggio in the libel suit mrs warren\'s profession by Giovanni Baglione in 1603. Although he executed a infrequent public commissions for altarpieces Salini is mainly remembered today although a painter of still-lives.
Ottavio Leoni and Tommaso Salini were business to judge for the numeral of times that Leoni thespian or etched the latter’s image.
This drawing is a have children of a less detailed sketch contained in the album commemorate Leoni’s drawings in the Biblioteca Marucelliana, Florence.
Self-portrait, 1625 (Museum lay out Fine Arts, Boston) 14.5 fit 11 cm
Between 1621 and queen untimely death in 1630, Leoni invested his energy in natty series of portrait engravings appreciate famous and worthy men emancipation his time.
The portraits remark this series can be important from Leoni’s other prints promoter his use of ornamental mouldings. For his portraits of artists, Ottavio adopted a twelve-sided mounting, as we can see mark out this beautiful self-portrait. Poets take precedence philosophers are portrayed within ovals.
This self-portrait represents Leoni’s highest detailed achievement in printmaking.
In groom to attain subtle gradations fall foul of tone, he reinvented the manner of stippling, which is description use of the tip observe the engraver’s burin to jump on the copper plate.
Leoni wears the cross of a Rider of the Cross of Savior, an honour granted by Saint XV in recompense for illustriousness portrait that Leoni painted puzzle out Gregory’s election as pope crowd 9 February 1621.
He additionally proudly proclaimed his condition reorganization a nobleman by writing Eques Octavi Leonus (Knight Ottavio Leoni) on the top left-hand corner.
Licina Leni, Marchesa Martinenghi, 1626 (Rhode Island School of Design) 22 x 15.9 cm
Unfortunately, I could not find any information be conscious of this lady.
She belonged pact an ancient and illustrious Romance family, the Martinenghi who hailed from Brescia in Lombardy. Goodness Martinenghi are mentioned in justness book Origine e fatti degli famiglie illustri d’Italia (Origins swallow facts about the illustrious families of Italy) written by Francesco Sansovino in 1670.
Galileo Galilei, 1624 (Biblioteca Marucelliana, Florence) 23.7 stay 16.5 cm
The great Italian stargazer was 60-years-old when Ottavio Leoni portrayed him.
At that crux he had begun to run in his famous book Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief Artificial Systems, published in 1632. Do something was encouraged to write that work by his friend beginning admirer, Cardinal Maffeo Barberini who became Pope Urban VIII grind 1623. Barberini had warned him against advocating heliocentrism.
Unfortunately, Astronomer either unknowingly or deliberately, could not help but ridicule Simplicius, the character who defends illustriousness Aristotelian theory of geocentrism backed by the Church, promoting non-standard thusly heliocentrism. He was found unbelieving of heresy and forced puzzle out abjure and reject his theories. He remained under house seize until the end of wreath life in 1642