Emmanuel Tzanfournaris ( el, Εμμανουήλ Τζανφουρνάρης, 1570 – 1630), also known as Emmanouil Manos was a Greek painter. He was a painter in Corfu and Venice. He was taught by famous painter

Thomas Bathas Thomas Bathas ( el, Θωμάς Μπαθάς, 1554 – 1599; also known as Tomios or Tomio, Batta Tornio) was a Greek painter, educator, and Vikar. He employed the maniera greca in some of his work but he also broke from tradition by employi ...

. Emmanuel's father Georgios was also a famous painter. Emmanuel was active within the Greek Community of Venice until 1625. Some of his paintings are in the church of

San Giorgio dei Greci San Giorgio dei Greci ( el, Ἅγιος Γεώργιος τῶν Ἑλλήνων, ´Agios Geórgios ton Ellínon, Saint George of the Greeks) is a church in the ''sestiere'' (neighborhood) of Castello, Venice, northern Italy. It was the center of ...

. He was influenced by

Michael Damaskinos Michael Damaskenos or Michail Damaskenos ( el, Μιχαήλ Δαμασκηνός, 1530/35–1592/93) was a leading post-Byzantine Cretan painter. He is a major representative of the Cretan School of painting that flourished in the 16th and 1 ...

and other Venetian painters. Tzanfournaris adopted the Venetian school but also stayed loyal to the

maniera greca Italo-Byzantine is a style term in art history, mostly used for medieval paintings produced in Italy under heavy influence from Byzantine art. It initially covers religious paintings copying or imitating the standard Byzantine icon types, but pa ...

. He influenced the works of countless painters namely

Emmanuel Tzanes Emmanuel Tzanes ( el, Εμμανουήλ Τζάνες, 1610 – 28 March 1690), also known as Bounialis ( el, Μπουνιαλής) Emmanuel Tzane-Bounialis, Emmanuel Zane, and Emmanuel Tzane. He was a Greek Renaissance painter. He was an a ...

, Franghias Kavertzas,

Philotheos Skoufos Philotheos Skoufos el, Φιλόθεος Σκούφος also known as Filotheos Skoufos. Philotheos was a Greek painter, educator and clergyman during the 17th century. He collaborated with Emmanuel Tzanes on several pieces while he was in Corf ...

and his son Theofilakto Tzanfournaris. Tzanfournaris artwork can be found all over the world. Sixteen of his paintings have survived.

History

Emmanuel was born in Corfu. His father was Georgios Tzanfournaris. He was a famous painter. His father painted the church Pantokratoras in the town of Zigos in Corfu. Emmanuel's teacher was the famous Cretan painter Thomas Bathas. Around 29 years of age Emmanuel moved to Venice. He stayed in Venice for twenty-eight years. While in Venice he married Eleni Soderini in 1605. They had four children. Theofilakto, Thomas, Andrew, and Roza. Theofilakto was a priest and a painter. His brother Thomas became a lawyer. Emmanuel's signature is present within the Greek community from 1611-1629. In 1623 he was elected Vicar. He was the representative of a bishop. By 1625, someone else was elected Vicar. He also paid his dues as a member of the Greek Community every year. He died at 61 years old in 1631. In Venetian public records, he is known as Manuel Zanfornari da Corfou. Some of his icons can be found in the Greek church in Venice

. His son inherited two of his icons. A will executed on February 14, 1651, in Venice outlined Theofilakto as the receiver of two paintings. The Kimisis of Saint Spyridon and the Feast of Orthodoxy. On March 1, 1658, Theofilakto gave the icons to the Greek Church in Venice

. Tzanfournaris became an extremely popular painter. His signature was forged as was the case with many popular artists. His style evolved. His early works exhibited the traditional

Cretan School Cretan School describes an important school of icon painting, under the umbrella of post-Byzantine art, which flourished while Crete was under Venetian rule during the late Middle Ages, reaching its climax after the Fall of Constantinople, becom ...

while his later works evolved because of his exposure to the art of Venice. Many artists were influenced by Tzanfournaris namely:

and Franghias Kavertzas.

was the priest of

was also briefly in Venice. Hatzidakis, 1997, pp 429-430

Gallery

File:Assumption of St. Spyridon by E. Tzanfournaris (1595).jpg, Assumption of St. Spyridon 1595 File:Tzanfournaris Emmanuel - The Annunciation - Google Art Project.jpg, The Annunciation File:Tzanfournaris Emmanuel - The Ascension - Google Art Project.jpg, The Ascension File:Triumph of Orthodoxy by E.Tzanfournaris.jpg, Triumph of Orthodoxy

References

Bibliography

* * * {{Late Cretan Renaissance 1570 births 1631 deaths Cretan Renaissance painters 17th-century Greek painters People from Corfu 16th-century Greek painters Greek Renaissance humanists