Francesco Solimena

Francesco Solimena , 1657-1717, Italian painter. Painting in the decorative tradition of the late baroque in Naples, Solimena was a technical virtuoso. His decorations for building interiors (e.g., Gesù Nuovo; 1725) are filled with twisting, dramatically foreshortened figures. Solimena was a teacher of international influence.

Solimena, Francesco (1657–1747). The leading Neapolitan painter of the first half of the 18th century. In a long and extremely productive career he painted frescos in many of the greatest churches in Naples and came to dominate the artistic life of the city. His vigorous style, often marked by dramatic lighting, owed much to the example of such Baroque artists as Giordano (his outstanding predecessor in Naples), Lanfranco, and Preti, but it also has a firmness of structure and a clarity of draughtsmanship that show his allegiance to the classical tradition of Raphael and Annibale Carracci. Although chiefly a religious painter, he was also a good portraitist. Solimena's paintings were in demand all over Europe and he became one of the wealthiest and most famous artists of the time. His influence was spread also by his celebrity as a teacher. Ramsay was among his pupils and Fragonard copied his work when he visited Naples in 1761.

Solimena, Francesco (b Canale de Serino, nr. Naples, 4 Oct. 1657; d Barra, nr. Naples, 3 Apr. 1747). The leading Neapolitan painter of the first half of the 18th century. In a long and extremely productive career he dominated the artistic life of Naples; he painted frescos in many of the city's greatest churches, including the vast Expulsion of Heliodorus from the Temple (1725, Gesù Nuovo), and he also produced a large number of easel pictures. His vigorous style, often marked by dramatic lighting, owed much to the example of such Baroque artists as Giordano (his outstanding predecessor in Naples), Lanfranco, and Preti, but it also has a firmness of structure and a clarity of draughtsmanship that show his allegiance to the classical tradition of Raphael and Annibale Carracci. Although chiefly a religious painter, he was also a good portraitist (a proud self-portrait is in the Uffizi, Florence). He never travelled further than Rome, but his paintings were in demand all over Europe and he became one of the wealthiest and most famous artists of the time. His international influence was spread also by his celebrity as a teacher. Ramsay was among his pupils and Fragonard copied his work when he visited Naples in 1761.