Cristiano Banti (4 January 1824 – 4 December 1904) was an Italian

genre Genre () is any form or type 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 f ...

and landscape painter. He was a leading figure in the

Macchiaioli The Macchiaioli () were a group of Italian painters active in Tuscany in the second half of the nineteenth century. They strayed from antiquated conventions taught by the Italian art academies, and did much of their painting outdoors in order to ...

movement of

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

Biography

Banti was born into a middle-class family in Santa Croce sull'Arno. A scholarship enabled him to study at the with Francesco Nenci. At this time, he worked in the Neo-Classical style and produced what is perhaps his best-known work, ''

Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...

Facing the

Inquisition The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

''.Biographical notes
from the ''Enciclopedia Italiana'' by Nello Tarchiani @

Treccani The ''Enciclopedia Italiana di Scienze, Lettere e Arti'' ( Italian for "Italian Encyclopedia of Science, Letters, and Arts"), best known as ''Treccani'' for its developer Giovanni Treccani or ''Enciclopedia Italiana'', is an Italian-language ...

In 1854, he moved to Florence and became an habitué of the

Caffè Michelangiolo Caffè Michelangiolo was a historic café in Florence, located in Via Larga (now renamed Via Cavour). During the nineteenth century Wars of Italian Independence, it became a major meeting place for Tuscan writers and artists, and for patriots and ...

, an important meeting place for local artists. It was here that he had his introduction to the Macchiaioli movement. His conversion to the movement's aesthetic ideals was such that he sought to have "Galileo" removed from display because he had "dishonored art without knowing it". Adriano Cecioni, ''Scritti e ricordi'' (1905), reprinted by BiblioLife (2014) After that, he became determined to produce paintings that would capture the natural effect of sunlight, going on many long outdoor excursions with his associates; especially

Telemaco Signorini Telemaco Signorini (; August 18, 1835 – February 10, 1901) was an Italian artist who belonged to the group known as the Macchiaioli. Biography He was born in the Santa Croce quarter of Florence, and showed an early inclination toward the st ...

, who had a great influence on him.Brief biography
from ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'' - Volume 5, by Giorgio di Genova @ Treccani. In 1861, he went to Paris to study with

Constant Troyon Constant Troyon (August 28, 1810 – February 21, 1865) was a French painter of the Barbizon school. In the early part of his career he painted mostly landscapes. It was only comparatively late in life that Troyon found his ''métier'' as a p ...

and

Camille Corot Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot ( , , ; July 16, 1796 – February 22, 1875), or simply Camille Corot, is a French landscape and portrait painter as well as a printmaker in etching. He is a pivotal figure in landscape painting and his vast o ...

, then settled in

Castelfranco di Sopra Castelfranco di Sopra is a '' frazione'' (parish) of the '' comune'' of Castelfranco Piandiscò, in the Province of Arezzo in the Italian region of Tuscany. It is located about southeast of Florence and about northwest of Arezzo. It was an a ...

to continue his nature studies. Perpetually dissatisfied with his work, he rarely exhibited. In 1870, he was part of the jury at the "Esposizione Nazionale di Parma" and had a falling out with Signorini. Five years later he returned to Paris, then went to London in 1879 to familiarize himself with English art. Cristiano_Banti_-_Woman_Sewing_on_the_Terrace_-_WGA1260

Cristiano_Banti_-_Woman_Sewing_on_the_Terrace_-_WGA1260

Divisions between him and the other Macchiaioli became deeper and he was often criticized, so he retired to his family's villa near

Castelfiorentino Castelfiorentino is a city and '' comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany, central-northern Italy, halfway between Florence (distance 30 km), Pisa (45 km) and Siena (55 km). The population is approxima ...

. Following the death of his wife, he moved to

Montemurlo Montemurlo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Prato in the Italian region Tuscany, located about northwest of Florence and about northwest of Prato. Montemurlo borders the following municipalities: Agliana, Cantagallo, Mo ...

, where he spent most of his time collecting art—often from the Macchiaioli, with whom he had become largely reconciled. Occasionally, he would even provide them with a place to stay. Although still shy of public recognition, he accepted an appointment as Professor at the

Academy of Fine Arts The following is a list of notable art schools. Accredited non-profit art and design colleges * Adelaide Central School of Art * Alberta College of Art and Design * Art Academy of Cincinnati * Art Center College of Design * The Art Institute ...

and served on the commission charged with reorganizing the

Uffizi The Uffizi Gallery (; it, Galleria degli Uffizi, italic=no, ) is a prominent art museum located adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria in the Historic Centre of Florence in the region of Tuscany, Italy. One of the most important Italian museums ...

. In 1887, he was back in London, studying the

Old Masters In art history, "Old Master" (or "old master")Old Masters De ...

at the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...

and making the acquaintance of

James McNeill Whistler James Abbott McNeill Whistler (; July 10, 1834July 17, 1903) was an American painter active during the American Gilded Age and based primarily in the United Kingdom. He eschewed sentimentality and moral allusion in painting and was a leading pr ...

. Banti fathered at least eight children, at least one of whom is known to have settled in England. He died at his villa in Montemurlo in 1904. Ten years later, his collection was sold at auction and dispersed.

Selected paintings

File:Banti-Confidences.jpg, ''Confidences'', 1868 File:Banti-Bundlers.jpg, ''Bundlers'', ca. 1861 File:Banti-Children.jpg, ''Children in the Sun'', ca. 1860–1862 File:Cristiano Banti - Paesana toscana.jpg, ''Tuscan peasant woman'', 1875 File:Cristiano Banti - Three Peasant Women - WGA1259.jpg, ''Three Peasant Women'', 1881

References

External links

Arcadja Auctions: More works by Banti
{{DEFAULTSORT:Banti, Cristiano 1824 births 1904 deaths 19th-century Italian painters Italian male painters People from Santa Croce sull'Arno Painters from Tuscany Italian genre painters Academic staff of the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze 19th-century Italian male artists

Biography

Selected paintings

References

Further reading

External links