Giovanni Felice Ramelli (1666–1740) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in

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 ...

. He also became an abbot of the Augustinian order of

Canons Regular of the Lateran The Canons Regular of the Lateran (CRL), formally titled the Canons Regular of St. Augustine of the Congregation of the Most Holy Savior at the Lateran, is an international congregation of an order of canons regular, comprising priests and lay brot ...

Biography

Jozef en de vrouw van Potifar Rijksmuseum SK-A-4363

He was born in Asti in the Piedmont. He became a monk in the abbey of Santa Andrea in

Vercelli Vercelli (; pms, Vërsèj ), is a city and ''comune'' of 46,552 inhabitants (January 1, 2017) in the Province of Vercelli, Piedmont, northern Italy. One of the oldest urban sites in northern Italy, it was founded, according to most historians, ...

; then moved to the abbey of San Pietro, Gattinara. In 1707, he was named abbott of Santa Maria Nova of Asti. He initially trained in Vercelli with the monk Danese Rho, a manuscript illuminator. He was master at reproducing miniature copies of the works of the pastel painter

Rosalba Carriera Rosalba Carriera (12 January 1673 – 15 April 1757) was a Venetian Rococo painter. In her younger years, she specialized in portrait miniatures. Carriera would later become known for her pastel portraits, helping popularize the medium in eigh ...

and the painter Maria Felice Tibaldi, who married the painter

Pierre Subleyras Pierre Subleyras (; November 25, 1699 – May 28, 1749) was a French painter, active during the late- Baroque and early- Neoclassic period, mainly in Italy. Life Subleyras was born in Saint-Gilles-du-Gard, France. He left France in 1728, havi ...

. In 1717, he was called to

, where he was made by Pope Clement XI Albani, as abbot in perpetuity of the Augustinian St John Lateran. In Rome, he was in contact with many of the premier artists of Italy including Trevisani,

Balestra Balestra may refer to: * Balestra (surname), a list of people * Palazzo Muti or Balestra, a 1644 townhouse in Rome * ''Balestra'', an Italian Navy Ariete-class torpedo boat of World War II * In fencing, a type of forward step, usually followed by ...

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 ...

, Nicolas Vleughels, and

Antonio Maria Zanetti Count Anton oMaria Zanetti (1689–1767) was a Venetian artist, engraver, art critic, art dealer and connoisseur. He formed a collection of engraved gems, of which he published a lavish catalogue. Life Zanetti spent his early manhood making ...

. Due his role in the Vatican library and to his proximity to the Pope, Ramelli was able to arrange a commission from

Daniel Seiter Daniel Seiter, Saiter, or Seyter (c.1642/1647–1705) was a Vienna, Viennese-born painter of the Baroque, who trained and worked in Italy. Biography According to Houbraken, Seiter was born on the border of Switzerland and brought up in Vien ...

to engrave in copper plates the famed Byzantine ''Menologion of Basil II''. In 1739, Abbot Ramelli commissioned Subleyras' canvas depicting ''Christ in the House of Simon'' for the church of Santa Maria Nuova in Asti. Also in 1739, he helped induct Subleyras into

Academy of St Luke 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 ...

, of which he was a member since 1722 as Academic of Merit. Subleyras painted Ramelli's portrait circa 1735. Ramelli excelled in

portrait miniatures A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting, usually executed in gouache, watercolor, or enamel. Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illuminated manuscripts, and were popular among 16th-century el ...

. In the Gallery of

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

, there are miniatures of Guido Reni,

Lorenzo Pasinelli Lorenzo Pasinelli (September 4, 1629 – March 4, 1700) was an Italian painter active mainly in Bologna during the late Baroque period. He was born in Bologna, and initially trained in the studio of Simone Cantarini. He then pursued studies in R ...

Giovanni Gioseffo Dal Sole Giovanni Gioseffo dal Sole (10 December 1654 – 22 July 1719) was an Italian painter and engraver from Bologna, active in the late- Baroque period. Upon the death of Carlo Cignani, Gioseffo dal Sole became among the most prominent painters in Bol ...

; while in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

is a female portrait. In the Riksmuseum of Amsterdam, there is a miniature of ''Joseph and Potiphar'' by

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 a ...

. The Palazzo Graziani in Pesaro has a miniature painting of a ''Shepherd with dead game'', while at the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from ...

is a miniature of the ''Virgin and Child''. The King of Sardinia invited Ramelli to his court, where he was for some time employed in painting the portraits of the most celebrated painters, many of which he copied from the originals, painted by themselves, in the Florentine Gallery (now

Uffizi The Uffizi Gallery (; it, Galleria degli Uffizi, italic=no, ) is a prominent art museum located adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria in the Historic Centre of Florence in the region of Tuscany, Italy. One of the most important Italian museums ...

).* He died in Rome and was buried in 1941

Santa Maria della Pace Santa Maria della Pace is a church in Rome, central Italy, not far from Piazza Navona. The building lies in rione Ponte. History The current building was built on the foundations of the pre-existing church of Sant'Andrea de Aquarizariis in 148 ...

References

External links

17th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 18th-century Italian painters Canons Regular of the Lateran Italian Baroque painters Portrait miniaturists People from Asti 1666 births 1740 deaths 18th-century Italian male artists {{Italy-painter-17thC-stub