Mattia Preti | |
|---|---|
 Self-portrait in the paintingPredica di San Giovanni Battista | |
| Born | (1613-02-24)24 February 1613 |
| Died | 3 January 1699(1699-01-03) (aged 85) |
| Style | Baroque painting |
| Signature | |
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Mattia Preti (24 February 1613 – 3 January 1699) was an ItalianBaroque artist who worked inItaly andMalta. He was appointed a Member of theOrder of Saint John.
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Born in the small town ofTaverna inCalabria, Preti was calledIl Cavalier Calabrese (the Calabrian Knight) after appointment as a Knight of the Order of St. John (Knights of Malta) in 1660.[1] His early apprenticeship is said to have been with the "Caravaggist"Giovanni Battista Caracciolo, which may account for his lifelong interest in the style ofCaravaggio.
Probably before 1630, Preti joined his brother Gregorio (also a painter), inRome, where he became familiar with the techniques of Caravaggio and his school as well as with the work ofGuercino,Rubens,Guido Reni, andGiovanni Lanfranco. In Rome, he painted fresco cycles in the churches ofSant'Andrea della Valle andSan Carlo ai Catinari. Between 1644 and 1646, he may have spent time in Venice,[2] but remained based in Rome until 1653, returning later in 1660–61. He painted frescoes for the church ofSan Biagio at Modena (app. 1651–2) and participated in the fresco decoration of thePalazzo Pamphilj inValmontone (documented 1660–61), where he worked along withPier Francesco Mola,Gaspar Dughet,Francesco Cozza,Giovanni Battista Tassi (il Cortonese), andGuglielmo Cortese.
During most of 1653–1660, he worked in Naples, starting with aSaint Nicholas. There he was influenced by another prominent painter of his era,Luca Giordano. Preti's major works include a series of large frescoex-votos depicting theVirgin or saints delivering people from the plague, which were painted on seven city gates and are now lost - two sketches for them are in theCapodimonte Museum in Naples,[3] including abozzetto of the Virgin with the baby Jesus looming over the dying and their burial parties which envisions aLast Judgement presided over by a woman.[4] Preti also won a commission to supervise the construction, carving, and gilding for the nave and transept ofSan Pietro a Maiella, along with producing aJudith and Holofernes andSaint John the Baptist, both still in Naples.
Having been made a Knight of Grace in theOrder of St John, he visited the order's headquarters inMalta in 1659 and spent most of the remainder of his life there. Preti transformed the interior ofSt. John's Co-Cathedral inValletta with a huge series of paintings on the life and martyrdom ofSt. John the Baptist (1661–1666). In Malta one also can find many paintings of Preti in private collections and in parish churches. His increased reputation led to an expanded circle of patrons, and he received commissions from all over Europe.[5][6]
While in Malta, Preti owned a slave who modelled for his paintings.[7]
Preti was fortunate to enjoy a long career and have a considerable artistic output. His paintings, representative of the exuberant late Baroque style, are held by many great museums, including important collections inNaples,Valletta,Palermo, and in his hometown ofTaverna, Calabria.
In theManderaggio area of Valletta, there is atown square named after him,Mattia Preti Square (Maltese:Misraħ Mattia Preti). In this square there is also a commemorativebust of him, which was unveiled by the Local Council of Valletta in 2014. He is buried at St. John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta alongside many other Knight of the Order.[8]
![The Marriage at Cana c.1655-1660, National Gallery, London[9]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aPreti%2c_Mattia_-_Wedding_at_Cana_-_c._1655.jpg)
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![Christ and the Woman Taken in Adultery, 1640s, 143.8 × 191.8 cm, Saint Louis Art Museum[10]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aMattia_Preti_-_Christ_and_the_Woman_Taken_in_Adultery_-_113-2017_-_Saint_Louis_Art_Museum.jpg)
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