Giovanni Bernardino Azzolini (c. 1572 – 12 December 1645) was an Italian painter and sculptor who continued painting in a late-

Mannerist Mannerism is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, when the Baroque style largely replaced it ...

style, mainly active in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

and

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

. He is also known by Azzolino or Mazzolini or Asoleni.

Life and work

Born in the town of

Cefalù Cefalù (; ), classically known as (), is a city and comune in the Italian Metropolitan City of Palermo, located on the Tyrrhenian coast of Sicily about east of the provincial capital and west of Messina. The town, with its population of jus ...

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

, where he likely received his initial training. He had moved to Naples by 1594. He then settled in Genoa, where he was elected to local ''Accademia di San Luca'' ( painter's guild) in 1618. In Naples, he painted a ''Presentation at the Temple'' (1599) for the church of

Santa Maria La Nova Santa Maria La Nova may refer to: * Santa Maria La Nova, Campagna, hamlet in Campagna, Italy * Santa Maria La Nova, Caltanissetta, cathedral in Caltanissetta, Italy * Santa Maria La Nova, Naples, church building in Naples, Italy * Santa Maria La ...

. He painted a ''Pentecost'' for the church of San Francesco at Caiazzo. Among his paintings in Genoa, is an ''Annunciation'' painted for the church of Monache Turchine. He painted a ''Martyrdom of St. Apollonia'' for the church of San Giuseppe. He painted a canvas of ''St. Francis Xavier's vision of the Virgin'' for the saint's chapel in the church of

Gesù Nuovo Gesù Nuovo ("New Jesus") is the name of both a church and a square in Naples, Italy. It is located just beyond the western edge of the city's historic center. To the southeast of the spire, one can see, just a block away, the Fountain of Monteoli ...

in Naples. His daughter married the painter

Jusepe de Ribera Jusepe de Ribera (; baptised 17 February 1591 – 3 November 1652) was a Spanish painter and Printmaking, printmaker. Ribera, Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, and the singular Diego Velázquez, are regarded as the major artist ...

and his son-in-law worked together with him on some commissions. Article on Azzolino
by

Justus Lange Justus Lange (born 1968) is a German art historian and curator, known for his work with Old Masters, and a curator at the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister in Kassel, Germany. Biography Justus Lange was born in Kempen, near the Dutch border. His fa ...

References

The Ascension by Giovanni Bernardino Azzolino

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Grove Art Encyclopedia entry
1570s births 1645 deaths People from Cefalù 16th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 17th-century Italian painters Painters from Naples 16th-century Italian sculptors Italian male sculptors 17th-century Italian sculptors Italian Baroque painters Painters from Genoa Artists from the Metropolitan City of Palermo {{Italy-painter-17thC-stub

Life and work

See also

References