Francesco Liani (c.1712 - 1780) was an Italian painter, mainly known for his portraits of the Neapolitan royal family. Born in Borgo San Donnino (now known as

Fidenza Fidenza (, locally ) is a town and (municipality) in the province of Parma, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. It has around 27,000 inhabitants. The town was renamed Fidenza in 1927, recalling its ancient Rome, Roman name of ; before, it was ...

), he moved to Naples in 1740 as part of the court of Charles of Bourbon (the future

Charles III of Spain Charles III (; 20 January 1716 – 14 December 1788) was King of Spain in the years 1759 to 1788. He was also Duke of Parma and Piacenza, as Charles I (1731–1735); King of Naples, as Charles VII; and King of Sicily, as Charles III (or V) (1735� ...

), for whom he produced equestrian portraits of

himself A reflexive pronoun is a pronoun that refers to another noun or pronoun (its Antecedent (grammar), antecedent) within the same sentence. In the English language specifically, a reflexive pronoun will end in ''-self'' or ''-selves'', and ref ...

and his wife. He also produced ''Portrait of Ferdinand IV of Bourbon'' (1766, Royal Museum Copenhagen) and ''Portrait of Ferdinand IV in Armour'' (National Museum of Capodimonte, Naples) for him. He also painted several noble families from Naples, including the De Sangro (part of the line of marquesses of San Lucido and dukes of Sangro). He died in Naples. His many religious works were influenced by Neapolitan artists such as Domenico Mondo,

Pietro Bardellino Pietro Bardellino (17 February 1728, Naples - 1806, Naples) was an Italian painter in the Rococo style. Life and works His personal style derives from that of his teacher, Francesco De Mura. As early as 1750, he was commissioned to paint the ...

and

Giuseppe Bonito Giuseppe Bonito (11 January 1707 – 9 May 1789) was a Neapolitan painter of the Rococo period. Giuseppe Bonito is known for genre depictions on canvas. Many of Gaspare Traversi's paintings had previously been attributed to Bonito. Biograph ...

as well as the art of Liani's native Emilia and the work of

Anton Raphael Mengs Anton Raphael Mengs (12 March 1728 – 29 June 1779) was a German Neoclassicism, Neoclassical painter. Early life Mengs was born on 12 March 1728, at Ústí nad Labem in the Kingdom of Bohemia, the son of Ismael Mengs, a Danish-born painter wh ...

, then active in Naples. He painted Stations of the Cross for Capua Cathedral, a ''Nativity'' and a ''Presentation in the Temple'' (Capodimonte), three nativity scenes and an ''Adoration of the Magi'' (

Royal Palace of Naples The Royal Palace of Naples () is a historic building located in Piazza del Plebiscito, in the historic center of Naples, Italy. Although the main entrance is located in this square, there are other accesses to the complex, which also includes th ...

), a series of eight paintings on the passion (

Palace of Caserta The Royal Palace of Caserta ( ; ) is a former royal residence in Caserta, Campania, north of Naples in southern Italy, constructed by the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies as their main residence as Kingdom of Naples, kings of Naples. The complex ...

) and ''The Wedding at Cana'' ( Museo Campano, Capua).''La passione di Cristo: la via Crucis di Francesco Liani e Raffaele Canoro'', exhibition catalogue (Caserta, Cappella Palatina), Caserta, 2006

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liani, Francesco 1710s births 1780 deaths 18th-century Italian painters People from Fidenza