Mosè Bianchi (13 October 184015 March 1904) was an Italian painter and printmaker.
Biography
The son of Giosuè Bianchi (1806–75), a painter of portraits and religious subjects in the
academic style, he enrolled at the
Brera Academy, Milan, in 1856. In 1859 he temporarily abandoned his studies to fight in the
second Italian War of Independence
The Second Italian War of Independence, also called the Sardinian War, the Austro-Sardinian War, the Franco-Austrian War, or the Italian War of 1859 (Italian: ''Seconda guerra d'indipendenza italiana''; German: ''Sardinischer Krieg''; French: ...
, returning to Milan to study under
Giuseppe Bertini. Among his fellow pupils was
Tranquillo Cremona, whose involvement with the
Scapigliati later had an impact on Bianchi’s work.
In 1862 Bianchi exhibited his first large-scale, independently executed work, the history painting the ''Priest Stefano Guandeca Accusing the Archbishop of Milan, Anselmo Pusterla, of Sacrilegious Betrayal'' (1862; priv. col.). He continued to exhibit regularly and in 1866 he was awarded the Pensionato Oggioni for his ''Conversion of St. Paul'' (1866; priv. col.), which enabled him to visit
Venice
Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
,
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
and
Rome
Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
. During this period Bianchi met the artists
Mariano Fortuny y Marsal and
Ernest Meissonier, and the dealer
Goupil, who inspired him to produce a series of 18th-century genre scenes such as ''Leaving for the Duel'' (1866;
Galleria d'Arte Moderna, Milan).
Eighteenth-century influences, especially the work of
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, were also important for his many fresco cycles, starting with those in the Villa Giovanelli in
Lonigo in the Veneto (1870). Bianchi continued to attract attention with his views of
Chioggia and Milan, these frequently providing the background for genre scenes (e.g. Porto di San Felice at Chioggia , 1885; Milan,
Sforza Castle).
Bianchi took part with some success at the Brera exhibitions and the Vienna Exhibition of 1873. It was in this period that he began to paint
genre
Genre () is any style or form 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 fo ...
scenes in 18th-century settings and numerous portraits, soon becoming one of the artists most in demand with the Milanese middle classes.
In 1890 Bianchi extended his interest to rural scenes, following
Eugenio Gignous and visiting
Gignese on
Lake Maggiore, where he painted works of great charm such as Goats at Gignese (watercolour, 1895). Notwithstanding his intense activity and continued public success (he was awarded the Premio Principe Umberto in 1874, 1894 and 1900), Bianchi spent his final years in poverty, assisted by his nephew, the painter
Pompeo Mariani (1857–1927).
Among his main works were a ''Monaca di Monza'' and a ''Milton'' exhibited in 1877 in Naples. In 1878, he exhibited in Paris a portrait of his father, a portrait of Signora Ponti, and ''I Chierici in Processione (Clerics in Procession)''. In 1881 in Milan, he exhibited: ''Burrasca nel Golfo di Venezia''; in 1884 in Turin, he exhibited: ''Canale di
Chioggia''; in 1887 Venice, he exhibited five canvases: ''Mascherata Chioggiotta''; ''Laguna in burrasca''; ''Chioggia''; ''Parola di Dio'', and ''Vaporino di Chioggia''.
''Dizionario degli Artisti Italiani Viventi: pittori, scultori, e Architetti.''
by Angelo de Gubernatis. Tipe dei Successori Le Monnier, 1889, page 56-57.
Gallery
File:Monaca di monza by Mosè Bianchi.JPG, '' The Nun of Monza'', 1865 (from the 1827 Manzoni's novel '' The Betrothed'')
File:Mose di Giosué Bianchi Paris place de Clichy 1884.jpg, ''Paris place de Clichy'', 1884
File:Mosè Bianchi Flora.jpg, ''Flora
Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...
'', c. 1890
File:Mosè Bianchi Lady.jpg , ''Portrait of a Lady'', c. 1890
File:Artgate Fondazione Cariplo - Bianchi Mosè, Vecchia Milano.jpg, ''Vecchia Milano, Old Milano'', 1890
File:Mose-bianchi-laguna-sul-tramonto-1893.jpg, ''Lagoon at Sunset'', c. 1893
File:Artgate Fondazione Cariplo - Gola Emilio, Lavandaie sul Naviglio.jpg, ''Washerwomen along the Canal (Naviglio)'', c. 1894–1899
File:Woman in front of a Mirror, Mose Bianchi.jpg, ''Woman in front of a Mirror'', c. 1900
File:Mose Bianchi Carnavale a Venezia.JPG, ''Carnaval in Venice'', c. 1910
Works
*''Gondola sul canale'', oil on canvas, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo.
*''A victim of the 17th-century'' (1863) Museo Civico, Brescia,
*Deposition, 1887 Cappella Visconti, Cimitère, Carnisio,
*''Woman painter'' (1874); ''Carrobbio'', Museo Raccolte Frugone at Villa Grimaldi-Fassio in Nervi, a frazione of Genoa,
*Frescoes, 1887 Villa San Fermo (or Giovanelli), Lonigo
*The sagra della vigilia, 1864; ''The Female letter-reader'' 1867; I fratelli al campo, 1867; The benedizione delle box, 1870 Interno rustico, Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan,
*''Frescoes in Salotto Azzurro''; ''Flora'' (1885), Palazzo Turati, Milan,
*Deposition, 1899, Cimitero Monumentale, Cappella Frova, Milan
*Frescos, Saletta Reale, Stazione Centrale, Milan
*Cleopatra, 1865; ''Portrait of Orsola Rebecchi''(1875); ''Portrait of Luigi Galbiati'' (1876); Traversata, (1885); ''Snows in Milan'' (c. 1885); ''Il ritorno dalla sagra'' (1887); ''Fishermen of Chioggia'' (1890); ''The Washerwomen'' (1894); ''Sad Return'' (1897); Notturno, (c. 1898); Reminiscenze milanesi del 1848 1898 Busto di giovane donna, 1898 - 1899, Galleria d'Arte Moderna, Milan
*''Portrait of Giulia Lucini Colombani'' (1894), Ospedale Maggiore, Milan
*''Crucifixion'', 1881 Diocesan Museum, Milan,
*Cavalcando; Pecore al ruscello; Scena rustic; Flora; Monache al lido; Donna col bambino al seno; ''Paolo and Francesca'' Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Milan
*''Lady of Monza'' (1865); ''Portrait of a Man'' (1875); The sorelle 1887, Museo Civico, Monza
*''A street of Verona'', Capodimonte Museum, Naples
*''Resurrection'' (1874); Studio di testa, 1880; ''The paurose'', 1881; ''Word of God'' 1887; Vaporino of Chioggia; Bosco nel Parco di Monza, 1895 Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna, Rome,
*''The Communion of St Louis Gonzaga'' (1864) Church Santa Maria Nascente and S. Carlo, Sant'Albino,
*It pittore Londonio, 1866; The lover Egidio, 1867; La Monaca di Monza, 1867 Galleria d'arte moderna, Turin
*''The bufera'', tempera on cardboard, Museo Revoltella, Trieste
*''Crucifixion'' (1879), parish church S. Antonio Abate, Valmadrera,
*''Portrait of a Lady'' c. 1898, Museo di Castelvecchio, Verona,
* ''Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin of the Miracles'', Corbetta
*''Portrait of Simonetta Galimberti'' (1861)
*''Portrait of Giacinta Galimberti'' (1861)
*''After the Duel'' (1866)
*''In Monza Cathedral'' (1872)
*''Portrait of a Man'' (1875)
*''Portrait of Giuseppe Antonio Fossati'' (1875)
*La storia (1877)
*Stemma sabaudo it Genio di Savoia (1883-1884)
*The spesa del Curato, (1885)
See also
* Emilio Borsa
* Pompeo Mariani
References
Bibliography
*
* Laura Casone
Mosè Bianchi
online catalogu
Artgate
by Fondazione Cariplo, 2010, CC BY-SA (source for the first revision of this article).
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bianchi, Mose
19th-century Italian painters
Italian male painters
Jewish painters
19th-century Italian Jews
People from Monza
Painters from Lombardy
Brera Academy alumni
Academic staff of Brera Academy
1840 births
1904 deaths
Painters from Milan
Italian printmakers
19th-century printmakers
19th-century Italian male artists