Ambroz Janez (Janko) Testen (31 August 1897 – 7 January 1984) was

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

and Croatian

expressionistic Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

painter of Slovenian descent.

Biohraphy

He was born in village

Loka pri Mengšu Loka pri Mengšu (; german: Laak bei Mannsburg''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 26.) is a village in the Municipality of Mengeš in the ...

near

Kamnik Kamnik (; german: Stein''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 26–27. or ''Stein in Oberkrain'') is a town in northern Slovenia. It is t ...

in northern Slovenia. He moved to Croatia as a teenager to become a Franciscan. His monk name was Benedict. Before

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

he lived in a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

Košljun Košljun may refer to: * Košljun (island), located near Krk, Croatia * Košljun, Pag Košljun ( Italian: ) is a small coastal village on the Croatian island of Pag, in Zadar County. Administratively, it is part of the town of Pag. As of 2 ...

, a tiny island near

Krk Krk (; it, Veglia; ruo, Krk; dlm, label= Vegliot Dalmatian, Vikla; la, Curicta; grc-gre, Κύρικον, Kyrikon) is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of Primorje-Gorski Kot ...

. He fought on Italian Front in

Tirol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

and

Duchy of Styria The Duchy of Styria (german: Herzogtum Steiermark; sl, Vojvodina Štajerska; hu, Stájer Hercegség) was a duchy located in modern-day southern Austria and northern Slovenia. It was a part of the Holy Roman Empire until its dissolution in 18 ...

. After World War I, in 1920, he deserted and escape to

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranea ...

where he took the name Ambroz.Croatian Encyclopedia online
''Testen, Ambroz Janez'', accessdate 14 July 2016 He lived two years in

Cavtat Cavtat (, it, Ragusa Vecchia, lit=Old Ragusa) is a village in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia. It is on the Adriatic Sea coast south of Dubrovnik and is the centre of the Konavle municipality. History Antiquity The original city was ...

monastery, where he learned painting from

Vlaho Bukovac Vlaho Bukovac (french: Blaise Bukovac; it, Biagio Faggioni; 4 July 1855 – 23 April 1922) was a Croatian painter and academic. His life and work were eclectic, for the artist pursued his career in a variety of locales and his style changed grea ...

, famous Croatian painter who had his workroom there. He also learned

watercolor painting Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to ...

from

Maksimilijan Vanka Maksimilijan "Maxo" Vanka (May 11, 1889 – February 2, 1963) was a Croatian-American artist. He is best known for the series of murals he completed in 1937 and 1941 at St. Nicholas Croatian Church in Millvale, Pennsylvania. Biography Early ...

. In 1929 he moved to

Pelješac Pelješac (; Chakavian: ; it, Sabbioncello) is a peninsula in southern Dalmatia in Croatia. The peninsula is part of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County and is the second largest peninsula in Croatia. From the isthmus that begins at Ston, to the top ...

, where he got to know

Celestin Medović Celestin may refer to: * Celestin (given name), a masculine given name * Celestin (surname) Celestin is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Amir Celestin (born 1990), American basketball player *Josaphat Celestin (born 1956), Hait ...

. From 1939 to 1961 he lived in a monastery on island

Krapanj Krapanj is an island in the Adriatic Sea, located south of Šibenik, Croatia. Krapanj is one of the smallest inhabited islands of the Adriatic Sea covering 0.36 km2. It is also the most densely inhabited island and has the lowest elevation ...

then in St. Bernardine monastery in Kampor on island Rab where he painted a lot of his famous works. Since 1989. there is a permanent exhibition of his works there. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he shortly lived in

Šibenik Šibenik () is a historic city in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is a political, educational, transport, industrial and tourist center of Šibenik-Knin County, and is also the ...

. He died in

Zadar Zadar ( , ; historically known as Zara (from Venetian and Italian: ); see also other names), is the oldest continuously inhabited Croatian city. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar serv ...

on 7 January 1984.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Testen, Ambroz 1897 births Expressionist painters Croatian painters 1984 deaths Croatian Franciscans Croatian people of Slovenian descent People from Kamnik