Raffaele Armenise (

Bari Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy a ...

, 19 March 1852 - Malgrate, 14 January 1925 ) was an Italian painter and scenographer, mainly painting history and

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

subjects.

Biography

He studied painting initially in Bari under Nicolo Zito, then at the

Institute of Fine Arts The Institute of Fine Arts (IFA) of New York University is dedicated to graduate teaching and advanced research in the history of art, archaeology and the conservation and technology of works of art. It offers Master of Arts and Doctor of Philoso ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, where he was influenced by

Domenico Morelli Domenico Morelli (4 August 182313 August 1901) was an Italian painter, who mainly produced historical and religious works. Morelli was immensely influential in the arts of the second half of the 19th century, both as director of the Accademia di ...

and Gennaro Ruo. In 1881, he married the daughter of the painter Borsino di Milan, who owned one of the first color (oleographic) printing establishments in Italy. Armenise moved to Milan by 1880 to work with his father-in-law. Among Armenise's works are: ''Dall' Usuraio Ebreo'' (The Jewish Usurer) bought by the Bank of Naples; ''Il Vaticano'' sold in Genoa; ''Lo scolto troppo caro''; ''La prova del veleno''; ''I Libertini'', exhibited at the Exposition of Turin in 1880. In Milan, he painted many miniatures: ''La Visita a Sua Eminenza'' acquired by the

Museo Revoltella The Revoltella Museum ( it, Museo Revoltella) is a modern art gallery founded in Trieste in 1872 by Baron Pasquale Revoltella. The baron, after he left his house to the city (located in Piazza Venezia) and all the works, furniture and books it co ...

of Trieste; ''I compari di San Giovanni''; ''La Famiglia del Cieco'', and ''L'Infanzia'' bought by the Mitchell Museum of New Orleans; and ''Sua Eminenza in campagna''. In 1899 he completed the decorations of the

Teatro Petruzzelli The Teatro Petruzzelli is the largest theatre of the city of Bari and the fourth Italian theatre by size. History Origin and golden age The history of the Teatro Petruzzelli of Bari begins when Onofrio and Antonio Petruzzelli, traders and ship b ...

in Bari (destroyed by fire in 1991), including the stage curtain depicting the entry of Orseolo II into Bari after its liberation from

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century Germany in the Middle Ages, German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings, to refer ...

. He worked with the sculptor Pasquale Duretti to complete the large central ceiling fresco of the theatre which depicted the allegories of Music, Dance, and Poetry, and four large medallions depicting famous composers from Puglia—

Giacomo Tritto Giacomo Domenico Mario Antonio Pasquale Giuseppe Tritto (2 April 1733 – 16 September 1824) was an Italian composer, known primarily for his fifty-four operas. He was born in Altamura, and studied in Naples; among his teachers were Nicola Fa ...

Luigi Capotorti Luigi Capotorti (17 March 1767 – 17 November 1842) was an Italian composer of both sacred and secular music. He was the ''maestro di cappella'' of several Neapolitan churches; the composer of ten operas, five of which premiered at the Teatro Sa ...

Giacomo Insanguine Giacomo Antonio Francesco Paolo Michele Insanguine (also called ''Giacomo Monopoli'' after his birthplace Monopoli; 22 March 1728 – 1 February 1795) was an Italian composer, organist, and music educator. He was the last director (primo maestro ...

, and

Salvatore Fighera Salvatore Fighera (1771? – 5 May 1837) was an Italian composer of both sacred and secular music. Born in Gravina in Puglia, he completed his musical studies at the Conservatorio di Sant'Onofrio a Capuana in Naples and spent several years in Mi ...

—as well as five smaller medallions with a variety of subjects. In Milan, Armenise also served as an illustrator.Apulia News
on Exhibit of Armenise.

References

1852 births 1925 deaths People from Bari 19th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 20th-century Italian painters Painters from Naples Painters from Milan Italian scenic designers 19th-century Italian male artists 20th-century Italian male artists {{Italy-painter-19thC-stub