Raffaele Armenise (

Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...

, 19 March 1852 -

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

, 14 January 1925) was an Italian painter and scenographer, mainly painting history and

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

subjects.

Biography

He studied painting initially in Bari under Nicolo Zito, then at the

Institute of Fine Arts An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, where he was influenced by

Domenico Morelli Domenico Morelli (4 August 182313 August 1901) was an Italians, Italian painter, who mainly produced historical and religious works. Morelli was immensely influential in the arts of the second half of the 19th century, both as director of the Ac ...

and Gennaro Ruo. In 1881, he married the daughter of the painter Borsino di Milan, who owned one of the first color (oleographic) printing establishments in Italy. Armenise moved to Milan by 1880 to work with his father-in-law. Among Armenise's works are: ''Dall' Usuraio Ebreo'' (The Jewish Usurer) bought by the Bank of Naples; ''Il Vaticano'' sold in Genoa; ''Lo scolto troppo caro''; ''La prova del veleno''; ''I Libertini'', exhibited at the Exposition of Turin in 1880. In Milan, he painted many miniatures: ''La Visita a Sua Eminenza'' acquired by the Museo Revoltella of Trieste; ''I compari di San Giovanni''; ''La Famiglia del Cieco'', and ''L'Infanzia'' bought by the Mitchell Museum of New Orleans; and ''Sua Eminenza in campagna''. In 1899 he completed the decorations of the

Teatro Petruzzelli The Teatro Petruzzelli is the largest theatre of the city of Bari and the fourth Italian theatre by size. History Origin and golden age The history of the Teatro Petruzzelli of Bari begins when Onofrio and Antonio Petruzzelli, traders and ship ...

in Bari (destroyed by fire in 1991), including the stage curtain depicting the entry of Orseolo II into Bari after its liberation from

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

. He worked with the sculptor Pasquale Duretti to complete the large central ceiling fresco of the theatre which depicted the allegories of Music, Dance, and Poetry, and four large medallions depicting famous composers from Puglia—

Giacomo Tritto Giacomo Domenico Mario Antonio Pasquale Giuseppe Di Tritto (2 April 1733 – 16 September 1824) was an Italian composer, known primarily for his fifty-four operas. He was born in Altamura, and studied in Naples; among his teachers were Nicola ...

Luigi Capotorti Luigi Capotorti (17 March 1767 – 17 November 1842) was an Italian composer of both sacred and secular music. He was the ''maestro di cappella'' of several Neapolitan churches; the composer of ten operas, five of which premiered at the Teatro Sa ...

Giacomo Insanguine Giacomo Antonio Francesco Paolo Michele Insanguine (also called ''Giacomo Monopoli'' after his birthplace Monopoli; 22 March 1728 – 1 February 1795) was an Italian composer, organist, and music educator. He was the last director (primo maestro ...

, and

Salvatore Fighera Salvatore Fighera (1771? – 5 May 1837) was an Italian composer of both sacred and secular music. Born in Gravina in Puglia, he completed his musical studies at the Music conservatories of Naples#Conservatorio di Sant'Onofrio a Capuana, Conserva ...

—as well as five smaller medallions with a variety of subjects. In Milan, Armenise also served as an illustrator.Apulia News
on Exhibit of Armenise. Raffaele Armenise - Madonna delle rose

References

1852 births 1925 deaths People from Bari 19th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 20th-century Italian painters Painters from Naples Painters from Milan Italian scenic designers 19th-century Italian male artists 20th-century Italian male artists {{Italy-painter-19thC-stub