Fortunino Matania
Fortunino Matania (born April 16, 1881 in Naples , † February 8, 1963 in London ) was an Italian artist who was best known for his realistic depiction of war. He was considered a representative of the artistic movements of realism and naturalism . During the First World War he worked as a war painter and worked, among other things, for the English magazine The Sphere in London.
Matania spent most of his life in London, influencing millions of people with his war documentaries published by magazines during World War I.
Life
Origin and family
Born in Naples, Fortunino Matania grew up in an artistic environment. His father Edoardo Matania owned an art studio and worked as a painter and illustrator himself. Fortunino Matania worked with his father from an early age. His mother was Clelia Della Valle, daughter of a Bourbon colonel from Naples. Matania had five siblings: Francesco (who was also an illustrator), Maria, Evelina, Anna and Erminia. Fortunino had a daughter, Clelia Matania , who was an actress.
Time in Naples (1881–1902)
He illustrated his first advertisement at the age of nine and his first book at the age of fourteen. At the age of fifteen, in 1896, Matania presented one of his first works, La piccola massaia , at an art exhibition organized by the Società promotrice di belle Arti . At that time his father was working as an illustrator for Treves in Milan , which gave Fortunino Matania orders in the field of illustration. He mainly worked for the magazine L'Illustrazione italiana .
His talent was also recognized by other, older illustrators, such as Gennaro Amato , who was friends with his father and worked for the English magazine The Illustrated London News and the French magazine L'Illustration .
Time in London (1902–1963)
Gennaro Amato introduced the young Fortunino Matania to the European magazine industry and in 1902 Matania moved to London, where he was hired by The Graphic while working at L'Illustration and The Illustrated London News . He had a photographic memory . When he was invited to the coronation of Edward VII in 1902 , he made use of this ability because sketchbooks were not allowed in Westminster Abbey .
After working for The Graphic for three years (from 1902 to 1905), Fortunino Matania signed an employment contract with the English magazine The Sphere , where he worked until 1926. Often his artistic skills were used to depict coronations, celebrations, official state visits, commemorations or other relevant public events. For this reason he was also sent to other countries as a special rapporteur, including Germany and Portugal . In 1906 he traveled to Egypt , Wales , Ireland , Norway and Denmark . In 1909 he followed orders in Holland and Spain . In the same year, his works were exhibited in the Walker Art Gallery's Autumn Exhibition of Modern Art in Liverpool . In 1911 he then traveled to India , where he spent three months and produced many drawings, which were very well received by the public.
When the First World War broke out , Fortunino Matania was in England, where he was still working as an illustrator for The Sphere . In 1916 he became an official war painter and also worked for The War Illustrated , The Strand Magazine and Tatler , as well as for Britannia and Eve .
During this time he was primarily on the war front, creating realistic depictions of the war. If he did not have the opportunity to be there himself, he conducted interviews with eyewitnesses and had the events precisely told. While questioning the war witnesses, he had toy soldiers explain the exact positions of the soldiers to him. In his studio he owned a large number of uniforms, weapons and other props in order to be able to correctly grasp every detail in his work. His works were published weekly and were either on the front page or two pages in the middle of the magazines. His fame grew during this time as readers visualized the war from its realistic and detailed drawings. His works showed the raw severity of the war, but also the humanity of the soldiers.
Fortunino Matania drew the picture Il quadro del soldato Tandey in 1914 . It was a war scene: the British soldier Henry Tandey carries a wounded comrade on his back during the Battle of Ypres , away from the battlefield. A few years later, on September 28, 1918, Tandey met Adolf Hitler at Marcoing's . Tandey let the then injured private run instead of shooting him. After Hitler took power in Germany years later, he was sent a copy of the picture Il quadro del soldato Tandey , which he kept as a souvenir in his summer residence at the Berghof .
Artistic direction
Fortunino Matania was a representative of realism and naturalism . Already in his youth he developed a passion for the representation of the "real", whereby he leaned heavily on the style of neoclassicism and academic art . All his life he dealt with topics of the present as well as history, in particular he depicted scenarios of antiquity . He followed the artistic trend of history painting , which was very popular in England thanks to the Dutch artist L. Alma Tadema . In this genre, not only ceremonies or known events were depicted, but also domestic scenes.
Matania followed his personal ideal of beauty, which - according to his version - could be achieved with the "photographic eye". He paid great attention to small things and details in order to make his pictures as realistic as possible.
During the First World War he used his artistic talent to create images of war. Since he was living and working in London at the time, he showed solidarity with the British Army. The pictures that were taken during this time had the task to be as little defeatist as possible and to keep the war mood on the home front (in Great Britain) high. His war works therefore had not only an informative purpose, but also a political, propagandistic purpose.
Selected Works
Neuve-Chapelle (1915)
This picture shows a war situation in a trench during the battle of Neuve-Chapelle . In the background you can see how a German artillery projectile hit one side of the trench. Some debris can be seen in the explosion cloud, being thrown into the air. The center of the picture is occupied by soldiers who seek the best possible protection during the attack. The focus of the viewer is above all a man who is unharmed and who looks at his comrades. One possible interpretation of the painter's intent would be to depict the unharmed man's confidence in victory despite the strong attack. With this approach, this soldier stands for the possibility of the situation “tipping”.
In 1918, Fortunino Matania presented the picture to the Royal Academy of Arts . The magazine The Sphere published a copy of the picture in 1918 with the headline A war picture at the Royal Academy which is an actual document (English for: "A war picture at the Royal Academy, which is a current document"). Matania explained how he was building a ditch in his garden to create the picture.
The Last General Absolution of the Munsters at Rue du Bois (1916)
The picture shows the Irish priest Francis Gleeson on the eve of the Battle of Aubers Ridge on May 9, 1915, pronouncing the remission of sins for the 500 men of the battalion of the Royal Munster Fusilliers. During the clash on the battlefield, most of the men of the Royal Munster Fusilliers died within the first 24 hours.
Fortunino Matania was not present at this ceremony. He created the picture from descriptions by the Irish writer Jessie Louisa Rickard .
The drawing first appeared in an issue of The Sphere magazine . Once published, it became one of the most famous depictions of the war in Ireland, with copies of the image circulating widely across the country. As public opinion about war changed and enthusiasm for war waned, the image lost its meaning and gradually disappeared from the public eye. The location of the original work is still unknown (as of 2014), some historians assume it was destroyed, while others suspect that it could be privately owned.
Soldiers Escorting Wounded Men From a War (1916)
In this picture several British soldiers can be seen retreating injured. Some of these soldiers are badly wounded and others, less wounded, carry or help them run. Matania represents the camaraderie and courage of the men who participated in the Battle of Le Cateau . This battle went down in British military history as "dishonorable". In the foreground of the composition of the picture stands out the soldier with a broken arm, who holds the hand of his blind comrade to guide him and thus shows human determination. In addition, this soldier stands very upright and thus shows strength despite the tragedy of the situation. The soldier standing opposite the viewer is reminiscent of the figure of the Apostle Andrew by Pierre Monot in the Lateran Basilica in Rome . It seems like the man is waiting for salvation in an act of religious belief.
It is known that Matania was not personally present at the battle, but his realistic style conveyed credibility and ensured consensus among the emotionalized viewers.
gallery
Transport of Wounded
Dressing station
How Private Flynn of South Wales Borderers won the Victoria Cross Medal
Horse-drawn transport of Wounded
literature
- Enzo Cassoni: Il Cartellonismo e l'illustrazione in Italia dal 1875 al 1950 . Nuova Editrice Spada, Rome 1984.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Fortunino Matania. In: matania.it. Retrieved February 21, 2018 (Italian).
- ↑ Matània, Fortunino. In: Treccani. Retrieved February 21, 2018 (Italian).
- ↑ a b c d e Fortunino Matania, del pathos a la propaganda de guerra. In: La Gran Guerra 1914–1918. September 14, 2008, accessed February 21, 2018 (Spanish).
- ↑ a b Fortunino’s Fortunes - WW1 artist Matania's 21st century revival. Mary Evans Picture Library, December 23, 2014, accessed February 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Hendrik Bebber: A British soldier spared him in the First World War: How Adolf Hitler was given life. In: Berliner Zeitung. July 13, 1997, accessed January 22, 2018 .
- ^ Neuve Chapelle, 1915 by Matania. In: PortForLio. Retrieved February 21, 2018 .
- ^ Neuve Chapelle 10th to 13th March 1915. (No longer available online.) In: The Worcestershire Soldier. March 3, 2015, archived from the original on June 6, 2016 ; accessed on February 21, 2018 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Reflection on the WW1 painting the 'Last General Absolution of the Munsters' by Fortunino Matania. Bishopric of the Forces, accessed February 21, 2018 .
- ↑ a b Michael Parsons: Mystery surrounds location of haunting image of Irish soldiers in first World War. In: The Irish Times. August 4, 2014, accessed February 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Jessie Louisa Rickard. Royal Munster Fusiliers Association, September 19, 2012, accessed February 21, 2018 .
- ↑ Rue du Bois 8th May 1915. Royal Munster Fusiliers Association, August 18, 2011, accessed on February 21, 2018 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Matania, Fortunino |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Italian artist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 16, 1881 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Naples |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 8, 1963 |
| Place of death | London |