Francesco Gonin (December 16, 1808 in

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

– September 14, 1889 in

Giaveno Giaveno is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about west of Turin. History Giaveno has very ancient origins; some local historians trace the first settlement back to Roman time ...

, near

Susa Susa ( ) was an ancient city in the lower Zagros Mountains about east of the Tigris, between the Karkheh River, Karkheh and Dez River, Dez Rivers in Iran. One of the most important cities of the Ancient Near East, Susa served as the capital o ...

, Piedmont) was an Italian painter, engraver and

scenographer A scenographer or scenic designer, also production designer, is a person who develops the appearance of a stage design, a TV or movie set, a gaming environment, a trade fair exhibition design or a museum experience exhibition design. The term ori ...

Biography

Early life

Francesco's father Giovanni was of French descent, and his mother Sara Castanier was

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

. He initially studied under

Giovanni Battista Biscarra Giovanni Battista Biscarra or Jean-Baptiste Biscarra (February 22, 1790 – April 13, 1851) was an Italian painter, sculptor and lithographer. He principally painted History painting, historical and religious subjects and royal portraits.

at the Accademia Albertina. He later learned

fresco 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 become ...

painting from the scenic designer of the Teatro Regio at Turin, Luigi Vacca, ultimately married Vacca's daughter.

Career

In 1840 Gonin illustrated the revised and definitive edition of

Alessandro Manzoni Alessandro Francesco Tommaso Antonio Manzoni (, , ; 7 March 1785 – 22 May 1873) was an Italian poet, novelist and philosopher. He is famous for the novel ''The Betrothed (Manzoni novel), The Betrothed'' (orig. ) (1827), generally ranked among ...

's ''I Promessi Sposi'' ( The Betrothed). He also illustrated a selection of the poetry of

Carlo Porta Carlo Porta (15 June 17755 January 1821) was an Italian poet, the most famous writer in Milanese (the prestige dialect of the Lombard language). Biography Early life and education Carlo Porta was born in Milan to a well-to-do family. His fath ...

and

Tommaso Grossi Tommaso Grossi (20 January 179110 December 1853) was an Italian poet and novelist. Biography Grossi was born in Bellano, on Lake Como, and graduated in law at University of Pavia in 1810. He then went to Milan to exercise his profession but the ...

written in

Milanese dialect Milanese (endonym in traditional orthography , ) is the central variety of the Western dialect of the Lombard language spoken in Milan, the rest of its metropolitan city, and the northernmost part of the province of Pavia. Milanese, due to t ...

, ''Poesie scelte in dialetto milanese di C. Porta e T. Grossi'' (Milan, 1842), and in these illustrations he revealed a taste for the humble and the picturesque. From 1840 to 1841, he collaborated with Carlo Bellosio to paint the ballroom and hall at the Royal Palace in Turin. Francesco and Bellosio

ed for the Castello di Racconigi. In 1844, he decorated the walls and ceiling of the theatre in the city of

La Spezia La Spezia (, or ; ; , in the local ) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second-largest city in the Liguria ...

. In 1845, the Carignano of Turin was decorated by Francesco. He spent the next year decorating three churches in Turin: San Massimo, San Dalmazzo, and Santissima Annunziata. He painted the theaters of

Asti Asti ( , ; ; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) of 74,348 inhabitants (1–1–2021) located in the Italy, Italian region of Piedmont, about east of Turin, in the plain of the Tanaro, Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and ...

and

Vigevano Vigevano (; ) is a (municipality) in the province of Pavia, in the Italian region of Lombardy. A historic art town, it is also renowned for shoemaking and is one of the main centres of Lomellina, a rice-growing agricultural district. Vigevano ...

, the Cathedral of Alessandria, the church Della Sforzesca, and the figures at the waiting hall of the train station of Porta Nuova. He also painted many historical canvases.''Pittura e scultura in Piemonte 1842-1891: Catalogo cronografico illustrato della Esposizione Retrospettiva 1892.''
A. Stella, Stamperia Reale della ditta G.B. Paravia e Compagnia. Turin, 1893, page 67-71.

Later years

In 1854 Gonin succeeded Vacca as stage designer at the Teatro Regio in Turin. His most famous piece was the large curtain depicting the Triumph of Venus, of which the sketch still exists (1854; Turin Civic Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art). He was also a painter of historical, genre and religious subjects as well as landscapes and portraits. Some of his works are held in the Galleria di Palazzo Bianco in Genoa and in the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna in Rome.

Select works

*''La Rocca di Sapay presso Viu'' (Roccia con pascolo) (1850) *''Defense of the body of Patroclos'' (1842) *''Duel of Achilles and Hector'' (1842) *''Battle of Mobaldone'' (1842) *''Surrender of the citadel to the French'' (1843) *''Mossa sulle coste della Bretagna'' (1844) *''Return in family'' (1846) *''Sack of Rome'' (1853) *''Death of Duke of Savoy Charles Emanuele II'' (1857) *''Columbus in Jail'' (1858) *''The forbidden book i daiansati'' (1859) *''Night Verse'' (1862) *''Interesting Visit'' (1867) *''The Guide'' (1867) *''Madonna'' (1879) *''

Still-life A still life (: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or human-made (drinking glasses, books, ...

'' (1872) *''After Meal of family'' (1873) *''Gran Telone del Teatro Reggio'' (1881)

References

External links

* 1808 births 1889 deaths Artists from the Kingdom of Sardinia Artists from Turin 19th-century Italian painters 19th-century Italian male artists Italian male painters Accademia Albertina alumni {{Italy-painter-19thC-stub