Francesco Albani or Albano (17 March or 17 August 1578 – 4 October 1660) was an Italian

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 th ...

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

who was active in Bologna (1591–1600), Rome (1600–1609), Bologna (1609), Viterbo (1609–1610), Bologna (1610), Rome (1610–1617), Bologna (1618–1660), Mantova (1621–1622), Roma (1623–1625) and Florence (1633).

Early years in Bologna

Albani was born in Bologna, Italy in 1578. His father was a silk merchant who intended his son to go into his own trade. By the age of twelve, however, he had become an apprentice to the competent mannerist painter

Denis Calvaert Denis (or Denys or Denijs) Calvaert (; around 154016 April 1619) was an Antwerp-born Flemish painter, who lived in Italy for most of his life, where he was known as Dionisio Fiammingo () or simply Il Fiammingo ("the Fleming"). Calvaert was a profo ...

, in whose studio he met Guido Reni. He soon followed Reni to the so-called "Academy" run by Annibale, Agostino, and

Ludovico Ludovico () is an Italian masculine given name. It is sometimes spelled Lodovico. The feminine equivalent is Ludovica. Persons with the name Ludovico Given name * Ludovico D'Aragona (1876–1961), Italian socialist politician * Ludovico Ario ...

Carracci. This studio fostered the careers of many painters of the

Bolognese school The Bolognese School of painting, also known as the ''School of Bologna'', flourished between the 16th and 17th centuries in Bologna, which rivalled Florence and Rome as the center of painting in Italy. Its most important representatives ...

, including Domenichino,

Massari Sari Abboud ( ar, ساري عبّود; born December 10, 1980), better known by his stage name Massari ( ), is a Lebanese Canadian R&B pop recording artist. His music combines Middle Eastern culture with western culture. He started his musical ...

Viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

, Lanfranco,

Giovanni Francesco Grimaldi Giovanni Francesco Grimaldi (1606 – 28 November 1680) was an Italian painter, draughtsman, printmaker and architect. He was an accomplished fresco painter of classical landscapes which were popular with leading Roman families. Life Grimaldi ...

Pietro Faccini Pietro Faccini or Facini (1562–1602), was an Italian painter, draughtsman and printmaker.Pietro Fa ...

Remigio Cantagallina Remigio Cantagallina (c. 1582–1656) was an Italian etcher active in the Baroque period. He was born in Sansepolcro, formerly Borgo Santo Sepolcro, in the province of Arezzo. He is best known for his etchings of landscapes and religious s ...

, and

Reni Reni may refer to: Places * Reni, Alwar, Alwar district, Rajasthan, India * Reni, Chamoli (also ''Raini''), Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, India, devastated by the 2021 Uttarakhand flood * Reni, Churu, Churu district, Rajasthan, India * Reni, U ...

Mature work in Rome

In 1600, Albani moved to Rome to work on the fresco decoration of the gallery of the Palazzo Farnese, which was being completed by the studio of Annibale Carracci. At this time, Rome, under

Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII ( la, Clemens VIII; it, Clemente VIII; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1592 to his death in March 1605. Bor ...

''Aldobrandini'' (1592–1605) was exhibiting some degree of administrative stability and renewed artistic patronage. While Pope Clement had been born into a Florentine family resident in

Urbino Urbino ( ; ; Romagnol: ''Urbìn'') is a walled city in the Marche region of Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the patronage of F ...

, his family was allied by marriage to the Emilia-Romagna and the Farnese, since

Ranuccio I Farnese, Duke of Parma Ranuccio I Farnese (28 March 1569 – 5 March 1622) reigned as Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Castro from 1592. A firm believer in absolute monarchy, Ranuccio, in 1594, centralised the administration of Parma and Piacenza, thus rescinding the n ...

had married

Margherita Aldobrandini Margherita Aldobrandini (29 March 1588 — 9 August 1646), was an Italian noblewoman member of the Aldobrandini family and by marriage Duchess consort of Parma and Piacenza during 1600–1622. She was also Regent of both Duchies during 1626–1628 ...

. Parma, like Bologna, being part of the Region of Emilia-Romagna, it was not surprising that Cardinal Odoardo Farnese, Ranuccio's brother, chose to patronise the Carraccis from Bologna, thereby establishing Bolognese dominance of Roman fresco painting for nearly two decades. Albani became one of Annibale's most prominent apprentices. Using Annibale's designs and assisted by Lanfranco and

Sisto Badalocchio Sisto Badalocchio Rosa (28 June 1585 – ) was an Italian painter and engraver of the Bolognese School. Born in Parma, he worked first under Agostino Carracci in Bologna, then Annibale Carracci, in Rome. He worked with Annibale till 1609, the ...

, Albani completed frescoes for the San Diego Chapel in

San Giacomo degli Spagnoli Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore ("Our Lady of the Sacred Heart", also known as San Giacomo degli Spagnoli and in Spanish, Santiago de los Españoles) is a Catholic church dedicated to the Virgin Mary located in Rome's Piazza Navona. History An ...

between 1602 and 1607. In 1606–7, Albani completed the frescoes in the

Palazzo Mattei di Giove A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

in Rome. He later completed two other frescoes in the same palace, also on the theme of ''Life of Joseph''. In 1609, he completed the ceiling of a large hall with ''Fall of Phaeton and Council of the Gods'' for the Palazzo Giustiniani (now Palazzo Odescalchi) at Bassano (di Sutri) Romano. This work was commissioned by

Vincenzo Giustiniani Marchese Vincenzo Giustiniani (13 September 1564 – 27 December 1637) was an aristocratic Italian banker, art collector and intellectual of the late 16th and early 17th centuries, known today largely for the Giustiniani art collection, assembled ...

, also famous as a patron of

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 ...

. During 1612–14, Albani completed the Choir frescoes at the church of Santa Maria della Pace which had just been remodelled by

Pietro da Cortona Pietro da Cortona (; 1 November 1596 or 159716 May 1669) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman ...

. In 1616 he painted ceiling frescoes of ''Apollo and the Seasons'' at Palazzo Verospi in Via del Corso for the cardinal

Fabrizio Verospi Fabrizio Verospi (1571 – 27 January 1639) was an Italian Catholic Cardinal and a curial judicial official. Early life Verospi was born in 1571 in Rome, the son of Girolamo Verospi and his wife Penelope Gabrielli and the uncle of Girolamo Veros ...

. In his later years, Albani developed a mutual, though respectful, rivalry with the more successful Guido Reni, who was also heavily patronized by the Aldobrandini, and under whom Albani had worked at the chapel of the

Palazzo del Quirinale The Quirinal Palace ( it, Palazzo del Quirinale ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, one of the three current official residences of the president of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporzia ...

. Albani's best frescoes are those on mythological subjects. Among the best of his sacred subjects are a ''St Sebastian'' and an ''Assumption of the Virgin'', both in the church of San Sebastiano fuori le Mura in Rome. He was among the Italian painters to devote himself to painting cabinet pictures. His mythological subjects include ''The Sleeping Venus'', ''Diana in the Bath'', ''Danaë Reclining'', ''Galatea on the Sea'', and ''Europa on the Bull''. A rare etching, the ''Death of Dido'', is attributed to him.

Carlo Cignani Carlo Cignani (15 May 1628 – 8 September 1719) was an Italian painter. His innovative style referred to as his 'new manner' introduced a reflective, intimate mood of painting and presaged the later pictures of Guido Reni and Guercino, as well ...

Andrea Sacchi Andrea Sacchi (30 November 159921 June 1661) was an Italian painter of High Baroque Classicism, active in Rome. A generation of artists who shared his style of art include the painters Nicolas Poussin and Giovanni Battista Passeri, the sculptors ...

, Francesco Mola, and

were among his students. Following the death of his wife he returned to Bologna, where he married a second time and lived until his death.

Legacy

Albani never acquired the monumentality or tenebrism that was quaking the contemporary world of painters, and is often derided for his lyric, cherubim-filled sweetness, which often has not yet shaken the mannerist elegance. While Albani's thematic would have appealed to

Poussin Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for ...

, he lacked the Frenchman's muscular drama. His style sometimes seems to have more in common with the decorative Rococo than with the painting of his own time. Among his pupils were his brother Giovanni Battista Albani, and others including Giacinto Bellini, Girolamo Bonini, Giacinto Campagna, Antonio Catalani,

, Giovanni Maria Galli, Filippo Menzani, Bartolommeo Morelli,

, Andrea Sghizzi, Giovanni Battista Speranza, Antonio Maria del Sole, Emilio Taruffi, and Francesco Vaccaro.Hobbes, p.3

Major works

*Se
Chronological List of paintings by Francesco Albani
*Frescoes in Hall of Aeneas -

Palazzo Fava Palazzo Fava or Palazzo Fava-Ghisilieri is a historic palace at 2 via Manzoni in Bologna, now housing art exhibitions and the Caffè Letterario Carracci Fava. It is most notable for its three rooms of frescoes of scenes from the lives of Jason, Me ...

, Bologna *Frescoes in Oratory of San Colombano - Bologna *Frescoes in Hall of Aeneas (1601–1602) - Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, Rome *Frescoes for

(1602–1607) - Museo del Prado and in

National Art Museum of Catalonia The Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (, English: "National Art Museum of Catalonia"), abbreviated as MNAC, is a museum of Catalan visual art located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Situated on Montjuïc hill at the end of Avinguda de la Reina M ...

*''Holy Family with Angels'' (1608–1610) - MFA, Boston *Allegorical canvases of the season
''Spring''
an

(1616–1617) -

Galleria Borghese The Galleria Borghese () is an art gallery in Rome, Italy, housed in the former Villa Borghese Pinciana. At the outset, the gallery building was integrated with its gardens, but nowadays the Villa Borghese gardens are considered a separate touris ...

, Rome *'' Nativity of the Virgin'' (1598) - Pinacoteca, Museo Capitolino, Rome *''Baptism of Christ'' (c. 1620) -

Oil on canvas Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...

, 428.5 x 224.5 cm,

Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna The National Art Gallery of Bologna (''Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna'') is a museum in Bologna, Italy. It is located in the former Saint Ignatius Jesuit novitiate of the city's University district, and inside the same building that houses the ...

*''Diana and Actaeon'' (1625–1630) -

Oil on wood A panel painting is a painting made on a flat panel of wood, either a single piece or a number of pieces joined together. Until canvas became the more popular support medium in the 16th century, panel painting was the normal method, when not pain ...

transferred to canvas, 74,5 x 99,5 cm, Gemäldegalerie, Dresden *''Four Elements ''(1628–1630) - Pinacoteca, Turin *''Holy Family with Angels'' (1630–1635) - Oil on canvas, 57 x 43 cm, Palazzo Pitti, Florence *''Self-Portrait'' (c. 1630) - Oil on canvas, 75 x 59.5 cm, Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna *''Venus Attended by Nymphs and Cupids'' (1633) -Oil on canvas, 114 x 171 cm, Prado, Madri

*''Annunciation'' (1633) - Church of San Bartolomeo, Bologna *''The Annunciation'' -

Oil on copper Oil on copper painting is the process of creating artworks by using oil paints with copper as the substrate. This is sometimes referred to as “copper as canvas” because canvas is the most well known surface material used for oil paintings. ...

, 62 x 47 cm, Hermitage, St. Petersburg
*''Madonna with Child in Glory with Sts. Jerome and Francis'' (c. 1640) - oil on copper, 43.5 x 31.8 cm, Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna *''The Baptism of Christ'' (c. 1640) - Oil on canvas, 268 x 195 cm, Hermitage, St. Petersburg *''The Rape of Europa'' (c. 1640-1645) - Oil on canvas, 170 x 224 cm, Hermitage, St. Petersburg *''Annunciation'' (c. 1640-1645) - Oil on copper, 62 x 47 cm, Hermitage, St. Petersburg *''The Holy Women at Christ's Tomb'' (1640s-1650s) - Oil on canvas, 170 x 224 cm, Hermitage, St. Petersburg *''Danza degli amorini '' - Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan *''Tondo Borghese'' - Galleria Borghese, Rome *''Tasso's landscapes'' - Galleria Colonna, Rome *''Holy Family'' -Church of Madonna di Galliera, Bologna

Works owned by the Musée du Louvre

*''Actaeon Changed into a Stag'' (c. 1630) *''Actaeon Changed into a Stag'' (c. 1617) *''Adonis Led by Cupids to Venus'' (1621–1633) *''Apollo and Daphne'' (c. 1615-1620) *''The Lamentation of Christ'' (c. 1601-1602) *''The Toilet of Venus'' (1621–1633) *''The Annunciation'' (c. 1620-1625) *''Christ Appearing to Mary Magdalene / Noli me tangere'' (c. 1620-1625) *''The Eternal Father and the Angel Gabriel'' (c. 1650-1660) *''Venus and Vulcan Resting'' (1621–1633) *''Nymphs Disarming Cupids'' (1621–1633) *''Saint Francis of Assisi Praying Before a Crucifix'' (c. 1630-1650) *''Salmacis and Hermaphroditus'' (c. 1630-1640) *''Venus and Adonis'' (c. 1630-1640) *''The Nativity'' (c. 1600) Attributed File:Francesco Albani - The Holy Family.jpg, ''The Holy Family'' (Sacra Famiglia),1630-35 oil on canvas, Galleria Pitti, Florence Image:Albani Venus.JPG, ''Venus and Amor'', oil on canvas

References

* *

Notes

External links

Francesco Albani in the "History of Art"Francesco Albani Paintings Gallery
(Public Domain Paintings - www.art.onilm.com) {{DEFAULTSORT:Albani, Francesco 1578 births 1660 deaths Painters from Bologna 16th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 17th-century Italian painters Italian Baroque painters Fresco painters Albani family Catholic painters