Francesco Costanzo Catanio, self-portrait

Costanzo catanio, coronazione di spine, ante 1636

Francesco Costanzo Catanio, (1602 – July 3, 1665) was a painter of the

Italian Baroque Italian Baroque (or ''Barocco'') is a stylistic period in Italian history and art that spanned from the late 16th century to the early 18th century. History The early 17th century marked a time of change for those of the Roman Catholic religion ...

period, born and mainly active in

Ferrara Ferrara (, ; egl, Fràra ) is a city and ''comune'' in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital of the Province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream ...

. He was variously known as Catanio, Cattani, Cattaneo, or Cattanio, sometimes without the forename Francesco.

Life

Catanio was born in 1602 in

, at that time in the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

, now in

Emilia-Romagna egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title ...

, the son of Giulio Cesare Catanio. He initially trained under Ippolito Scarsellino in Ferrara, until – because of his "...litigious and ill-tempered..." manner – his father sent him to Bologna to study in the school of

Guido Reni Guido Reni (; 4 November 1575 – 18 August 1642) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, although his works showed a classical manner, similar to Simon Vouet, Nicolas Poussin, and Philippe de Champaigne. He painted primarily religious ...

. On the death of his father in 1627, he returned to Ferrara, where he came under the influence of

Carlo Bononi Carlo Bononi (1569? - 1632) was an Italian painter. From an 1876 book: '' Giulio Cromer, Carlo Bononi a pupil of Bastaruolo, and Alfonso Rivarola or Chenda, were the last artists of any eminence in Ferrara.'' Page 175 Biography Born and act ...

, and began to paint in a style less influenced by

Ludovico Carracci Ludovico (or Lodovico) Carracci (21 April 1555 – 13 November 1619) was an Italian, early-Baroque painter, etcher, and printmaker born in Bologna. His works are characterized by a strong mood invoked by broad gestures and flickering light th ...

and more by

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...

. Catanio was described as prone to carrying a sword, hunting, and brawls. He was so quarrelsome and had such a turbulent disposition that he passed the greater portion of his life in exile or in disgrace. After injuring a soldier, Catanio was forced to seek refuge in the monastery of San Francesco where he was employed in painting frescoes. He was able to travel with the Marchese Giraldi throughout Italy.Dizionario storico degli uomini illustri ferraresi
by Luigi Ughi, page 123. In 1654, he traveled briefly to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in the patronage of Cardinal

Carlo Pio di Savoia Carlo Pio di Savoia (7 April 1622 – 13 February 1689) was an Italian Catholic Cardinal of the Pio di Savoia family. He was the nephew of Cardinal Carlo Emanuele Pio di Savoia. Early life Pio was born 7 April 1622, the son of Ascanio ...

Works

One source says he excelled in painting scenes of soldiers and ruffians in combat. In his earliest works in Ferrara – a ''San Gregorio'' originally painted soon after 1630 for the church of that saint, now in Santa Maria dei Teatini, and the ''Coronazione di spine'' and ''Flagellazione'' in the

Duomo ''Duomo'' (, ) is an Italian term for a church with the features of, or having been built to serve as, a cathedral, whether or not it currently plays this role. Monza Cathedral, for example, has never been a diocesan seat and is by definition not ...

from before 1636 – already show the influence of Caravaggio. He also painted studio portraits.Fondazione Zeri
Portrait of Francesco Catanio. His ''Martirio di San Matteo'' for the church of was probably painted soon after 1636, when the building was enlarged. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

two of his paintings were destroyed: a ''S. Luigi Gonzaga che rinuncia alla signoria di Castiglione'' in Santo Stefano (formerly in the Gesù); and an ''Orazione nell'Orto'' in .

Life

Works

References

Further reading