Gregorio Lazzarini (1657 – 10 November 1730) was an
Italian painter of mythological, religious and historical subjects, as well as portraits. One of the most successful Venetian artists of the day,[1] a prominent teacher, and father to a significant school of painting, he is best known for having first trained
Giambattista Tiepolo, who joined his workshop in 1710 at the age of fourteen.[2] His own style was somewhat eclectic.
He joined the
painters' guild in Venice in 1687. Active in Venice until at least 1715,[2] he spent most of his life in the
Venetian Republic. He was a prolific painter.[3] He was reputed to be a patient teacher who imparted a broad knowledge of artistic styles for the portrayal of mythological and historical subjects; according to his contemporary biographer, Vincenzo da Canal, "the young who desired to get ahead in the pictorial arts chose Lazzarini as their master".[4][n 2] Other pupils of Lazzarini included
Gaspare Diziani[2] and
Bartolomeo Ignazio Capello.[6]
Some of his works decorate the Sala dello Scrutinio of the
Doge’s Palace in Venice. A group of his paintings are on view inside the Sala San Tommaso at the basilica of
Santi Giovanni e Paolo. Among his major works is a canvas depicting the Charity of San Lorenzo Giustiniani for the Patriarcal house at
San Pietro di Castello.[7] His overtly
academic style, which changed little during his career, combined the solidity of
Emilian painting of the
Baroque period with the rich colours of the
Venetian school.[2]
Lazzarini died on 10 November 1730 in Villabona Veronese (now Villa d'Adige in
Badia Polesine), having moved there in September to stay with his brother, the local priest.[3]
Orpheus and the Bacchantes, Ca' Rezzonico
Doge Morosini offers the Reconquered Morea to Venice and Merit Offers the Command to Doge Morosini Sala del Scrutinio, Voting Hall
Doge Morosini offers Reconquered Morea to Venice
Notes and references
Notes
^ The contemporary biography, Vita di Gregorio Lazzarini by Vincenzo da Canal, which was originally compiled in 1732 (published, 1809), provides an essential source of information on Lazzarini's life and works.[3]
^ A nobleman from
Vicenza, da Canal wished to record the achievements of teacher and student alike.[4] He acknowledges that Tiepolo quickly abandoned Lazzarini's "diligent manner, and, being all fire and spirit, adopted one that was rapid and free".[5]
References
^Pedrocco, Filippo (1996).
"Becoming Tiepolo". In Christiansen, Keith (ed.). Giambattista Tiepolo, 1696-1770. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 37.
ISBN978-0-87099-812-6.