Angelo Bacchetta (1841–1920) was an Italian painter.

Biography

He studied at the

Brera Academy The Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera (), also known as the or Brera Academy, is a state-run tertiary public academy of fine arts in Milan, Italy. It shares its history, and its main building, with the Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan's main public mu ...

, where he made friends with Filippo Carcano, under the tutelage of

Francesco Hayez Francesco Hayez (; 10 February 1791 – 12 February 1882) was an Italian painter. He is considered one of the leading artists of Romanticism in mid-19th-century Milan, and is renowned for his grand historical paintings, political allegories, and ...

. After leaving the academy prematurely, he moved to

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

(1866–1868), where he was influenced by the recent innovations from 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 ...

movement. In 1867 he took part in the International Exposition of Paris. After the death of the King

Vittorio Emanuele II Victor Emmanuel II (; full name: ''Vittorio Emanuele Maria Alberto Eugenio Ferdinando Tommaso di House of Savoy, Savoia''; 14 March 1820 – 9 January 1878) was King of Sardinia (also informally known as Piedmont–Sardinia) from 23 March 1849 u ...

, he created an album containing epigraphs about Italian cities and towns, which was offered to the successor

Umberto I Umberto I (; 14 March 1844 – 29 July 1900) was King of Italy from 9 January 1878 until his assassination in 1900. His reign saw Italy's expansion into the Horn of Africa, as well as the creation of the Triple Alliance among Italy, Germany an ...

, who conferred him the degree of Knight of the Order of the Crown of Italy. In 1885 he moved to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

: due to some appreciated works, he was decorated by the government with the honour of Knight of the Order of Christ. He returned to Portugal the following year, and he painted the portraits of the members of the royal family and of

Luciano de Castro Luciano is an Italian, Spanish and Portuguese given name and surname. It is derived from Latin ''Lucianus'', patronymic of ''Lucius'' ("Light"). The French form is '' Lucien'', while the Basque form is '' Luken''. Single name * Luciano (rapp ...

, who had just become

President of the Council of Ministers The president of the Council of Ministers (sometimes titled chairman of the Council of Ministers) is the most senior member of the cabinet in the executive branch of government in some countries. Some presidents of the Council of Ministers are ...

. Then he moved back to Crema, where he remained for the rest of his life, set up the only personal exposition in his career, and became, with Eugenio Giuseppe Conti, Crema's most appreciated portrait painter of the nineteenth century. Bacchetta was influenced by the style introduced in Crema some decades earlier by Pietro Racchetti, considered the town's first specialized portrait painter. Angelo Bacchetta was the forefather of a family of painters: his son Azelio (1870–1907), his nephews Tullio (1892–1974) and Ugo (1930–2005). His sister, Teresa, married Luigi Manini, a well-known painter, set designer and architect, who, like Bacchetta, was born in Crema and worked in Portugal; furthermore, his son Azelio married in turn Manini's daughter, Ebe.

Notable works

In the area of Crema, Bacchetta left paintings and

frescos Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting becom ...

in several churches: among them, the Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Croce. Several of Bacchetta's paintings and drawings are in the Civic Museum of Crema.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacchetta, Angelo 1841 births 1920 deaths 19th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 20th-century Italian painters 19th-century Italian male artists 20th-century Italian male artists