Nikolaos Doxaras ( el, Νικόλαος Δοξαράς; 1706/10 – 2 March 1775). He was a Greek painter and teacher. His father was famous painter

Panagiotis Doxaras Panagiotis Doxaras ( el, Παναγιώτης Δοξαράς) (1662–1729) also known as Panayiotis Doxaras, was an author and painter. He was a prolific member of the Heptanese School. He was influenced by early members of the movement name ...

was the father of the Greek

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, ...

and the

Modern Greek Enlightenment The Modern Greek Enlightenment ( el, Διαφωτισμός, ''Diafotismos'', "enlightenment," "illumination"; also known as the Neo-Hellenic Enlightenment) was the Greek expression of the Age of Enlightenment. Origins The Greek Enlightenment w ...

in art. They are both prominent members of the Heptanese School. They refined Greek art bringing 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 ...

into the Maniera Italiana. Artists he influenced include:

Nikolaos Kantounis Nikolaos Kantounis or Kandounis (Greek: Νικόλαος Καντούνης; 1767–1834) was a Greek priest, painter and teacher who did not follow the traditional Maniera Greca. His teacher was the famous painter Nikolaos Koutouzis. He began to ...

Nikolaos Koutouzis Nikolaos Koutouzis, or Koutousis (Greek: Νικόλαος Κουτούζης; 17411813) was a Greek painter, poet and priest. He was part of the Heptanese School (painting), Heptanese School, but also a member of the Modern Greek Enlightenment in ...

and

Gerasimos Pitsamanos Gerasimos Pitsamanos or Pitzamanos ( el, Γεράσιμος Πιτσαμάνος or Πιτζαμάνος; 6 March 1787 – 5 December 1825) was a Greek architect and portrait painter. Most of his known works are watercolors. Biography He was bo ...

. His influence can be seen in some of

's paintings notably ''The Assumption.'' Nikolaos taught famous painter

. Both

and Doxaras artistic style refined the art of the Ionian Islands.

Venetian painting Venetian painting was a major force in Italian Renaissance painting and beyond. Beginning with the work of Giovanni Bellini (c. 1430–1516) and his brother Gentile Bellini (c. 1429–1507) and their workshops, the major artists of the Venetian ...

influenced countless Greek artists who were living in the empire. From

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 ...

Theodore Poulakis Theodore Poulakis ( el, Θεόδωρος Πουλάκης; 1622–1692) was a Greek Renaissance painter and teacher. He is considered the father of the Heptanese School and one of the most prolific painters of Venetian Crete. Poulakis was a me ...

. Twenty years after Nikolaos's death the style came to an end due to the

Fall of the Republic of Venice The fall of the Republic of Venice was a series of events that culminated on 12 May 1797 in the dissolution and dismemberment of the Republic of Venice at the hands of Napoleon Bonaparte and Habsburg Austria. In 1796, the young general Napoleon ...

. A new artistic style developed after the Greek

which coincided with

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 ...

in the rest of Europe called the middle

in art also known as Neo-Hellenikos Diafotismos.

History

He was born in Kalamata. His father was famous painter

his mother's last name was Bon. They were a prominent family. He had seven brothers and sisters. His brother Demetrios was also a famous painter. His father was a theoretical painter who translated several books from Italian. His father studied the science of painting and wrote ''On painting (Περί ζωγραφίας)'' in 1726. In 1715, his family moved to

Lefkada Lefkada ( el, Λευκάδα, ''Lefkáda'', ), also known as Lefkas or Leukas (Ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Λευκάς, ''Leukás'', modern pronunciation ''Lefkás'') and Leucadia, is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of Gr ...

. His father

traveled to Venice in 1720. The family was given land in Lefkada by the government but they moved to Corfu. He was with his father in 1723 in Corfu. He was a soldier in the Venetian Army. He was under the command of Johann Schulenberg. He was a flag bearer. While he was in Corfu with his father, he assisted his father in painting

Saint Spyridon Church Saint Spyridon Church is a Greek Orthodox church located in Corfu, Greece. It was built in the 1580s. It houses the relics of Saint Spyridon and it is located in the old town of Corfu. It is a single-nave basilica and its bell tower is the highes ...

. He was

helper.

died in 1729.

left his son Nicholas his military office and persona. His brother Demetrios inherited Panagioti's artistic painting tools. Nicholas received a diamond ring and a holy cross. In 1729 Nikolas went to Lefkada. Around the month of August, he gave his brother Demetrios the land they inherited to cultivate. He left for Venice for ten years. Nikolaos was listed in the financial registers of Palazzo Loredan as a guest of Johann Schulenberg. He was listed as an integral part of the Schulenburg Art Gallery. He was his close confidant. Johann Schulenberg accumulated a massive art collection. He also had some of the most famous artists in the world working for him. Information is archived regarding Doxaras's art from 1730-1738. While Nicholas was at the Schulenburg Art Gallery he created a small painting on sheepskin, a painting of a musical instrument and paintings with mythological figures. He also copied portraits of Schulenburg and Cromwell. He also painted the inner circle of Schulenburg and their wives. He painted Bacchus, Ariadne, the Sacrifice of Iphigenia and the city of Corfu with a view of the sea. He left Venice with the rank of Captain. He moved back to

. While in

he married Chrisi Pantazi Psoma. He served the Venetian Army in

Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...

Cephalonia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It i ...

and

Zakynthos Zakynthos (also spelled Zakinthos; el, Ζάκυνθος, Zákynthos ; it, Zacinto ) or Zante (, , ; el, Τζάντε, Tzánte ; from the Venetian form) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands. Za ...

. He continued painting throughout his life. While he was in

, he painted the ceiling and the walls of the Church of Faneromeni. He was also a teacher. He taught famous painter

. In 1761, while in Zakynthos, he agreed to paint the church of Agios Minas in Lefkada. He painted the ceiling. Nikolaos Doxaras was in possession of his father's special painting notebook. He used the book throughout his life as a guide to painting. He added a special portion about gilding images in Italian. He died in

in 1775. Drakopoulou, 2010, pp 270-272 Some of his works were damaged during the earthquake of 1953. Luckily they were restored by experts. His paintings can be found in the National Art Gallery of Greece. ''The Birth of the Mother of God'', is at the

Byzantine Museum of Zakynthos The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

Paintings

El Greco Domḗnikos Theotokópoulos ( el, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος ; 1 October 1541 7 April 1614), most widely known as El Greco ("The Greek"), was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El G ...

and Doxaras painted the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The paintings possess geometric similarities. El Greco's painting has more figures. The figures at the bottom of the painting seem to converse about the Virgin. She is a large figure in the heavens surrounded by Angels.

's figures take up more of the canvas. In the heavens, he has more figures than Doxaras but at the bottom of the painting, both artists have a similar number of people. The Virgin's hands are open, exhibiting the

Panagia Panagia ( el, Παναγία, fem. of , + , the ''All-Holy'', or the ''Most Holy''; pronounced ) (also transliterated Panaghia or Panajia), in Medieval and Modern Greek, is one of the titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern ...

, mother embracing the earth. In the Doxaras, the Virgin's hands are closed, and the mother is embracing heaven. In the El Greco she is on top of the moon. Clearly

influenced Doxaras to some extent.

's paintings were all over the world at the time. He was a very popular artist. In the Doxaras painting, the Virgin occupies a similar space. She is in the heavens surrounded by three angles. The clouds of the heavens are clearer and more available to the eye of the viewer. The painting clearly exhibits the elevation. The angles seem to be holding her up. The figures at the bottom of the painting are kneeling in awe and respect to the appearance of the Virgin. The figures at the bottom of the Doxaras take up less of the canvas. Compared to the

the figures are more attentive to the supernatural appearance of the Mother of God in the Doxaras. Both paintings have a similar number of figures at the bottom but Doxaras makes a clearer statement of purpose. The Doxaras exhibits a Neoclassical feel corresponding to the art of the time. The painting is a symbol of the

in art. Doxaras and El Greco were painting masters. Nikolaos's father

was a theoretical painter. He appreciated the painting masters. The painting structure was emulated by

in the Ascension of the Christ.

Gallery

File:Nikolaos Doxaras Birth of the Virgin.png, Birth of the Virgin File:The Dormition of the Virgin Mary.jpg, Dormition of the Virgin Mary File:Prophet David by Nikolaos Doxaras.jpeg, Prophet David File:One of the Prophets from Faniromeni.jpg, One of the Prophets File:Birth of Virgin Mary by Doxaras.jpeg, The Birth of the Virgin File:Panagia Faniromeni.jpg, Fresco's at Panagia Faniromeni

External links

Nikolaos Doxaras

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doxaras, Nikolaos Greek painters 1710 births 1775 deaths People from Kalamata 18th-century Greek painters Painters of the Heptanese School Greek Baroque painters