Agostino Masucci – Portrait of Pope Clement XII, seated

Agostino Masucci (; c. 1691 – 19 October 1758) was an Italian painter of the late-

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

period.

Biography

Born in Rome, he initially apprenticed with

Andrea Procaccino Andrea Procaccini (14 January 1671 – 1734) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active in Rome as well as in Spain. Biography Procaccini was born in Rome. He trained in the studio of Carlo Maratta. He painted the prophet ''Daniel' ...

, and then became a member of the studio of

Carlo Maratta Carlo Maratta or Maratti (13 May 162515 December 1713) was an Italian painter, active mostly in Rome, and known principally for his classicizing paintings executed in a Late Baroque Classical manner. Although he is part of the classical tradition ...

. He joined the

Accademia di San Luca The Accademia di San Luca (the "Academy of Saint Luke") is an Italian academy of artists in Rome. The establishment of the Accademia de i Pittori e Scultori di Roma was approved by papal brief in 1577, and in 1593 Federico Zuccari became its fir ...

in 1724, and from 1736 to 1738, he was director or ''Principe''. Masucci worked for the

House of Savoy The House of Savoy ( it, Casa Savoia) was a royal dynasty that was established in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, the family grew in power from ruling a small Alpine county north-west of Italy to absolute rule of ...

, and also obtained commissions from

John V of Portugal Dom John V ( pt, João Francisco António José Bento Bernardo; 22 October 1689 – 31 July 1750), known as the Magnanimous (''o Magnânimo'') and the Portuguese Sun King (''o Rei-Sol Português''), was King of Portugal from 9 December 1706 ...

due to his friendship with Filippo Juvarra and Luigi Vanvitelli. For example, for the latter he painted the main altarpiece of the Cathedral of Évora. Masucci also made the models for the three main mosaic panels in the Chapel of St.

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

, designed by Luigi Vanvitelli (along with Nicola Salvi) for King

. It was built in Rome starting in 1742, disassembled in 1747, and shipped to Lisbon, where it was reassembled in the Church of St. Roch ( Igreja de São Roque). It was completed in 1750, although the mosaics in it were not finished until 1752. Built of many precious marbles and other costly stones, as well as gilt bronze, it was held to be the most expensive chapel in Europe up to that time. For the Royal house of Savoy, he painted a series of historical canvases along with

Giovanni Battista Pittoni Giambattista Pittoni or Giovanni Battista Pittoni (6 June 1687 – 6 November 1767) was a Venetian painter of the late Baroque or Rococo period. He was among the founders of the Academy of Fine Arts of Venice, of which in 1758 he became the ...

, Sebastiano Conca, and Francesco Monti. Most of the works he completed, however, were in churches in Rome, including ovals in Santa Maria in Via Lata, and works in San Francesco di Paola, San Marcello al Corso,

Santa Maria del Popolo it, Basilica Parrocchiale Santa Maria del Popolo , image = 20140803 Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo Rome 0191.jpg , caption = The church from Piazza del Popolo , coordinates = , image_size ...

Santissimo Nome di Maria in Via Latina ''Santissimo Nome di Maria a Via Latina'' is a modern parish and titular church at Via Centirupe 18/22 in the Appio Latino quarter, just to the east of the Parco della Caffarella in Rome, Italy. The dedication is to the Holy Name of Mary. The pari ...

and

Santa Maria Maggiore The Basilica of Saint Mary Major ( it, Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, ; la, Basilica Sanctae Mariae Maioris), or church of Santa Maria Maggiore, is a Major papal basilica as well as one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome and the larges ...

. He painted the ''Madonna with the Seven Founders of the Servite Order'' (c. 1728 found in the Art Institute of Chicago. His academicism and grand-manner painting span styles from Baroque to incipient

Neoclassicism Neoclassicism (also spelled Neo-classicism) was a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassicism was ...

. He was a tutor to

Stefano Pozzi Stefano Pozzi (9 November 1699 — 11 June 1768) was an Italian painter, designer, draughtsman and decorator whose career was spent largely in Rome. Born in Rome, he was one of four artist sons of his father, an innkeeper: Rocco (1701–74) ...

Johann Zoffany Johan Joseph Zoffany (born Johannes Josephus Zaufallij; 13 March 1733 – 11 November 1810) was a German neoclassical painter who was active mainly in England, Italy and India. His works appear in many prominent British collections, includin ...

, and

Gavin Hamilton Gavin Hamilton may refer to: * Gavin Hamilton (archbishop of St Andrews) (died 1571), archbishop of St Andrews * Gavin Hamilton (bishop of Galloway) (1561–1612), bishop of Galloway * Gavin Hamilton (artist) (1723–1798), Scottish artist * Gavin ...

. Gavin Hamilton biography
He may have mentored

Pompeo Batoni Pompeo Girolamo Batoni (25 January 1708 – 4 February 1787) was an Italian painter who displayed a solid technical knowledge in his portrait work and in his numerous allegorical and mythological pictures. The high number of foreign visitors tra ...

Sources

Short biography.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Masucci, Agostino 1690s births 1758 deaths 18th-century Italian people 17th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 18th-century Italian painters Painters from Rome Italian Baroque painters Pupils of Carlo Maratta