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{{short description|Italian painter}}
[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - Death of Cato - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|309px|Death of Cato]]
[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - Death of Cato - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|309px|Death of Cato]]
'''Gioacchino Assereto''' (1600 – 28 June 1649) was an [[Italy|Italian]] painter of the early [[Baroque]] period and one of the most prominent history painters active in [[Genoa]] in the first half of the 17th century.
'''Gioacchino Assereto''' (1600 – 28 June 1649) was an Italian painter of the early [[Baroque]] period and one of the most prominent history painters active in [[Genoa]] in the first half of the 17th century.


==Life==
==Life==
He initially apprenticed at age 12 with [[Luciano Borzone]] and from circa 1614 in the studio of [[Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo]].<ref name=new>M. Newcome. "Assereto, Gioacchino." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 14 May 2016</ref> He attended the Nude Academy instituted by Giancarlo Doria.<ref name=prado>[https://www.museodelprado.es/coleccion/artista/assereto-gioacchino/3a208845-9db0-4867-bd20-261a8152fd30 Assereto, Gioacchino] at the Prado Museum {{link language|es|Spanish}}</ref>
He initially apprenticed at age 12 with [[Luciano Borzone]] and from circa 1614 in the studio of [[Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo]].<ref name=new>M. Newcome. "Assereto, Gioacchino." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 14 May 2016</ref> He attended the Academy of the Nude (painting from nude models) instituted by Giancarlo Doria.<ref name=prado>[https://www.museodelprado.es/coleccion/artista/assereto-gioacchino/3a208845-9db0-4867-bd20-261a8152fd30 Assereto, Gioacchino] at the Prado Museum {{in lang|es}}</ref>


He was active in Genoa. In 1639 Assereto he travelled to Rome where he visited the studios of various painters. He likely met Genoese artists working in Rome, such as [[Luca Saltarello]], [[Giovanni Maria Bottalla]], [[Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione]] and [[Giovanni Andrea Podestà]]. His stay in Rome was important as it brought him in contact with the developing realism of the followers of Caravaggio.
He was active in Genoa. In 1639 Assereto he travelled to Rome where he visited the studios of various painters. He likely met Genoese artists working in Rome, such as [[Luca Saltarello]], [[Giovanni Maria Bottalla]], [[Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione]] and [[Giovanni Andrea Podestà]]. His stay in Rome was important as it brought him in contact with the developing realism of the followers of Caravaggio.
[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - The Torture of Prometheus.jpg|thumb|224px|The Torture of Prometheus]]
[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - The Torture of Prometheus.jpg|thumb|224px|The Torture of Prometheus]]
In the 1640s Assereto was active as a fresco painter. The artist was very successful in Genoa and in his later years many copies of his work were produced in his studio, some by his son Giuseppe Assereto.<ref name=new/> The artist was in his lifetime praised by the contemporary Genoese biographer [[Raffaele Soprani]] as incomparable. The rather vain artist shared this view.<ref>Mary Newcome, ''An Unknown Early Painting and Some Other Worksby Assereto'', Jahrbuch der Berliner Museen, 27. Bd. (1985), p. 61-75</ref>
In the 1640s Assereto was active as a fresco painter. The artist was very successful in Genoa and in his later years many copies of his work were produced in his studio, some by his son Giuseppe Assereto.<ref name=new/> The artist was in his lifetime praised by the contemporary Genoese biographer [[Raffaele Soprani]] as incomparable. The vain artist shared this view.<ref>Mary Newcome, ''An Unknown Early Painting and Some Other Works by Assereto'', Jahrbuch der Berliner Museen, 27. Bd. (1985), p. 61-75</ref>


==Work==
==Work==
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[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - The Lamentation.jpg|thumb|left|300px|The Lamentation]]
[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - The Lamentation.jpg|thumb|left|300px|The Lamentation]]


In 1640 Assereto painted [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - The Lamentation.jpg|''The Lamentation'']] ([[Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens]]), a powerful picture which uses a black background and intense shadows to give dramatic effect to Christ’s dead body that almost seems to shimmer in the darkness.<ref name=cum>[http://blog.cummermuseum.org/2012/02/gioacchino-assereto-the-lamentation/ Gioacchino Assereto, ''The Lamentation''] at Cummer Museum</ref> A work also showing this Caravaggist influence is the [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - Death of Cato - Google Art Project.jpg|''Death of Cato'']] (Musei di Strada Nuova, Palazzo Bianco, Genoa), in which Assereto moved away from his refined style with vivid colours to a bolder, more powerful style where theatrical effects of flaming torches and candlelight emphasize violent emotions. The work also shows the influence of northern Caravaggesque painters such as [[Gerrit van Honthorst]] and [[Matthias Stom]].<ref name=new/>
In 1640 Assereto painted [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - The Lamentation.jpg|''The Lamentation'']],<ref>''The Lamentation'' is found at [[Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens]].</ref> a powerful picture which uses a black background and intense shadows to give dramatic effect to Christ's dead body that almost seems to shimmer in the darkness.<ref name=cum>[http://blog.cummermuseum.org/2012/02/gioacchino-assereto-the-lamentation/ Gioacchino Assereto, ''The Lamentation''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160823032448/http://blog.cummermuseum.org/2012/02/gioacchino-assereto-the-lamentation/ |date=2016-08-23 }} at Cummer Museum</ref> A work also showing this Caravaggist influence is the [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - Death of Cato - Google Art Project.jpg|''Death of Cato'']] (Musei di Strada Nuova, Palazzo Bianco, Genoa), in which Assereto moved away from his refined style with vivid colours to a bolder, more powerful style where theatrical effects of flaming torches and candlelight emphasize violent emotions. The work also shows the influence of northern Caravaggesque painters such as [[Gerrit van Honthorst]] and [[Matthias Stom]].<ref name=new/>


In the 1640s he devoted himself to an in-depth study of the works of Rubens and [[Anthony van Dyck]]. As a result his compositions became more lively and agitated. He also introduced a greater emotional involvement in his works through the use of lights and colours that reveal the knowledge of the Venetian school.<ref name=prado/> His [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - Ecce homo.jpg|''Ecce Homo'']] (1640s, Auctioned at Sotheby's on 10 December 2015, London, lot 174) shows in the broad and phlegmatic figure of Christ the influence of the Ecce Homo painted by [[Anthony van Dyck]] in Genoa circa 1625.<ref>[http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2015/old-master-british-paintings-day-sale-l15037/lot.174.html Gioacchino Assereto, ''Ecce homo''] at Sotheby's</ref>
In the 1640s he devoted himself to an in-depth study of the works of Rubens and [[Anthony van Dyck]]. As a result, his compositions became more lively and agitated. He also introduced a greater emotional involvement in his works through the use of lights and colours that reveal the knowledge of the Venetian school.<ref name=prado/> His [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - Ecce homo.jpg|''Ecce Homo'']] (1640s),<ref>''Ecce Homo'' was auctioned at Sotheby's on 10 December 2015, London, lot 174.</ref> shows in the broad and phlegmatic figure of Christ the influence of the ''Ecce Homo'' painted by [[Anthony van Dyck]] in Genoa circa 1625.<ref>[http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2015/old-master-british-paintings-day-sale-l15037/lot.174.html Gioacchino Assereto, ''Ecce homo''] at Sotheby's</ref>


His late works often depict figures at three-quarter-length and are characterised by a sober realism, a delicate psychological tension between the figures and the grave beauty of the still-lifes. These works have been compared to works by Velázquez and Murillo. An example is [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - Esau sells his birthright.jpg|''Esau sells his birthright'']] (c. 1645; [[Palazzo Bianco]], Genoa).<ref name=new/>
His late works often depict figures at three-quarter-length and are characterised by a sober realism, a delicate psychological tension between the figures and the grave beauty of the still lifes. These works have been compared to works by Velázquez and Murillo. An example is [[:File:Gioacchino Assereto - Esau sells his birthright.jpg|''Esau sells his birthright'']] (c. 1645; [[Palazzo Bianco]], Genoa).<ref name=new/>
[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - Esau sells his birthright.jpg|thumb|300px|Esau sells his birthright]]
[[File:Gioacchino Assereto - Esau sells his birthright.jpg|thumb|300px|Esau sells his birthright]]


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==External links==
==External links==
*{{Commons-inline|Category:Gioacchino Assereto|Gioacchino Assereto}}
*{{Commons-inline}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:1600 births]]
[[Category:1600 births]]
[[Category:1649 deaths]]
[[Category:1649 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Genoa]]
[[Category:17th-century Italian painters]]
[[Category:17th-century Italian painters]]
[[Category:Italian male painters]]
[[Category:Italian male painters]]
[[Category:Genoese painters]]
[[Category:Painters from Genoa]]
[[Category:Italian Baroque painters]]
[[Category:Italian Baroque painters]]

Latest revision as of 05:48, 16 June 2023

Death of Cato

Gioacchino Assereto (1600 – 28 June 1649) was an Italian painter of the early Baroque period and one of the most prominent history painters active in Genoa in the first half of the 17th century.

Life[edit]

He initially apprenticed at age 12 with Luciano Borzone and from circa 1614 in the studio of Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo.[1] He attended the Academy of the Nude (painting from nude models) instituted by Giancarlo Doria.[2]

He was active in Genoa. In 1639 Assereto he travelled to Rome where he visited the studios of various painters. He likely met Genoese artists working in Rome, such as Luca Saltarello, Giovanni Maria Bottalla, Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione and Giovanni Andrea Podestà. His stay in Rome was important as it brought him in contact with the developing realism of the followers of Caravaggio.

The Torture of Prometheus

In the 1640s Assereto was active as a fresco painter. The artist was very successful in Genoa and in his later years many copies of his work were produced in his studio, some by his son Giuseppe Assereto.[1] The artist was in his lifetime praised by the contemporary Genoese biographer Raffaele Soprani as incomparable. The vain artist shared this view.[3]

Work[edit]

Most of Assereto's works depict religious and history subjects, although he also produced some portraits. Throughout the decade in which he was a student, Assereto produced many works in a Baroque idiom, which were close in style and genre. He incorporated drama and emotion in his paintings with the aid of the chiaroscuro and sfumato techniques. He continued to improve his technique and style during his twenties and thirties. During his visit to Rome in 1639 he discovered a flourishing interest in realism and Caravaggism. His interest in realism and encouraged him to continue with his detailed description of heads and hands. It may also have revealed to him the possibilities of compositions that depend on chiaroscuro rather than on colour.

The Lamentation

In 1640 Assereto painted The Lamentation,[4] a powerful picture which uses a black background and intense shadows to give dramatic effect to Christ's dead body that almost seems to shimmer in the darkness.[5] A work also showing this Caravaggist influence is the Death of Cato (Musei di Strada Nuova, Palazzo Bianco, Genoa), in which Assereto moved away from his refined style with vivid colours to a bolder, more powerful style where theatrical effects of flaming torches and candlelight emphasize violent emotions. The work also shows the influence of northern Caravaggesque painters such as Gerrit van Honthorst and Matthias Stom.[1]

In the 1640s he devoted himself to an in-depth study of the works of Rubens and Anthony van Dyck. As a result, his compositions became more lively and agitated. He also introduced a greater emotional involvement in his works through the use of lights and colours that reveal the knowledge of the Venetian school.[2] His Ecce Homo (1640s),[6] shows in the broad and phlegmatic figure of Christ the influence of the Ecce Homo painted by Anthony van Dyck in Genoa circa 1625.[7]

His late works often depict figures at three-quarter-length and are characterised by a sober realism, a delicate psychological tension between the figures and the grave beauty of the still lifes. These works have been compared to works by Velázquez and Murillo. An example is Esau sells his birthright (c. 1645; Palazzo Bianco, Genoa).[1]

Esau sells his birthright

Gioacchino Assereto was also active as a fresco painter. In the 1640s he painted frescoes for the Palazzo Granello and commissioned works for the Sant'Agostino church. Only fragments of these frescoes have been preserved.[1]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e M. Newcome. "Assereto, Gioacchino." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 14 May 2016
  2. ^ a b Assereto, Gioacchino at the Prado Museum (in Spanish)
  3. ^ Mary Newcome, An Unknown Early Painting and Some Other Works by Assereto, Jahrbuch der Berliner Museen, 27. Bd. (1985), p. 61-75
  4. ^ The Lamentation is found at Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens.
  5. ^ Gioacchino Assereto, The Lamentation Archived 2016-08-23 at the Wayback Machine at Cummer Museum
  6. ^ Ecce Homo was auctioned at Sotheby's on 10 December 2015, London, lot 174.
  7. ^ Gioacchino Assereto, Ecce homo at Sotheby's

Further reading[edit]

  • Raffaele Soprani, "Le vite de pittori, scoltori et architetti genovesi", pp. 167–173, Genova, 1674.
  • Roberto Longhi, "L'Assereto", in "Dedalo", VII, p. 362, 1926.
  • Tiziana Zennaro, "Sull'attività giovanile di Gioacchino Assereto", in "Paragone", n. 549, Novembre 1995.
  • Camillo Manzitti, "Gioacchino Assereto: tangenze giovanili con Bernardo Strozzi e nuove testimonianze figurative", in "Paragone", n. 61, 2005.

External links[edit]