Michele de Napoli (April 28, 1808 – March 24, 1892) was an Italian painter, mainly of grand manner historic and religious paintings in a Neoclassic style in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, Italy.

Biography

He was born in

Terlizzi Terlizzi ( Barese: ) is a town and ''comune'' of the region of Apulia in southern Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Bari, lying to the west of the seaport of Bari on the Adriatic Sea, in the midst of a fertile plain. , its population was some 27 ...

, in the province of Bari to Giuseppe de Napoli and Maria Michele Mastrandea. Initially intending to become a lawyer, he moved to Naples at the age of 19 to pursue studies, but became attracted to art. After graduating from law in 1833, he became a pupil of Costanzo Angelini. The painting of ''Alcibiades'' gained him a scholarship to study in Rome. He painted in frescoes for the church of Monteverginella (1843). Alcibiades7220

He also painted frescoes on the ''Martyrdom of Santa Lucia'' (1845), for the church of Santa Lucia. He painted the sipario or theater curtain (1849) at the Teatro del Fondo in Naples. He painted a ''Vision of Santa Maria Maddalena'' (1853) for the church of Santa Maria Maddalena ai Cristallini He painted a ''St Francis of Assisi with Stigmata'' (1853) now in Capodimonte. He painted frescoes (1853–54) for the wall of the chorus of

San Domenico Maggiore San Domenico Maggiore is a Gothic, Roman Catholic church and monastery, founded by the friars of the Dominican Order, and located in the square of the same name in the historic center of Naples. History The square is bordered by a street/alle ...

. In 1854, he painted a curtain for the teatro Piccinni of Bari; then frescoes for the Andria Cathedral (1855) and the Capua Cathedral (1856). In 1859, he painted a ''St Benedict resurrects a peasant boy'' for the Benedictine church in Catania. In 1860, he was nominated lawyer for the city, and member of the city council, and inspector of the National Museum of Naples. He was attached to the liberal party. In 1863, he married Luisa Patella, 26 years his junior; they had no children. He moved to Terlizzi for the remainder of his life. For 15 years, he was active as a politician. In 1876, he returned to paint two canvases (''Baptism of St Augustine'' and ''Death of St. Jerome'') for the

Altamura Cathedral Altamura Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Altamura, ''Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta''), dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the city of Altamura, in the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, in south ...

. Many of his later works were donated to the Cathedral of Terlizzi, where they are today. He left money for his studio to be made into a museum, but this is closed due to lack of funds.Entry in Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 38 (1990) by Clara Gelao
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:de Napoli, Michele 1808 births 1892 deaths 19th-century Italian painters Italian male painters Painters from Naples Fresco painters 19th-century Italian male artists