Roberto Ferruzzi (; 16 December 1853 – 16 February 1934) was a

Dalmatian Italian Dalmatian Italians are the historical Italian national minority living in the region of Dalmatia, now part of Croatia and Montenegro. Since the middle of the 19th century, the community, counting according to some sources nearly 20% of all Dalma ...

artist. He is best known for the painting ''Madonnina'' that won the second

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...

in 1897.

Biography

Roberto Ferruzzi was born in Sebenico in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

(now

Šibenik Šibenik () is a historic city in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is a political, educational, transport, industrial and tourist center of Šibenik-Knin County, and is also the ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

) in 1853 to

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

parents. At the age of four he moved to

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

with his family. After the death of his father, a lawyer, he returned to Dalmatia to study

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

. In 1868, he returned to Venice to enroll in the . He subsequently entered 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 B ...

and graduated with a law degree. However, instead of practicing law, he gained vocation as a self-taught painter. Afterwards, he moved to Luvigliano, a ''

frazione A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...

'' of

Torreglia Torreglia is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Padua in the Italy, Italian Veneto region, located about west of Venice and about southwest of Padua. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 5,978 and an area of .All demograp ...

, where he painted ''Madonnina'' in 1897. Ferruzzi exhibited his work for the first time in 1883 in Turin, consisting mostly of figure paintings. In 1887, he exhibited a canvas in Venice titled ''La prima penitenza'', a

genre painting Genre painting (or petit genre), a form of genre art, depicts aspects of everyday life by portraying ordinary people engaged in common activities. One common definition of a genre scene is that it shows figures to whom no identity can be attached ...

of a boy praying a rosary in penance for bad behavior whilst his grandmother looks on amused. In 1891–1892 at the

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

exposition, his genre painting ''Hush!'' won an award. In 1897, he exhibited the ''Madonnina'' and ''Toward the Light'' in Venice.History of Modern Italian Art
by Ashton Rollins Willard (1902), page 644-645. Ferruzzi died on 16 February 1934 in

and was buried in the small cemetery of Luvigliano in his family's plot, near his wife Ester Sorgato and his daughter Mariska. He bore two descendants of the same name: his son Roberto (nicknamed Bobo), a painter of lagoons; and his grandson Roberto (nicknamed Robi), an art appraiser and antiquarian.

References

External links

Article (in Italian) about the ''Madonnina'' with picture
÷ {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferruzzi Roberto 1853 births 1934 deaths People from the Austrian Empire Dalmatian Italians People from Šibenik 19th-century Italian painters 19th-century Italian male artists Italian male painters 20th-century Italian painters 20th-century Italian male artists