Stefano Tofanelli (September 26, 1752 – November 30, 1812) was an Italian painter during the Neoclassic period.

Life

He was born in Nave, near

Lucca Città di Lucca ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its Province of Lucca, province has a population of 383,9 ...

, and as a young boy of ten he was apprenticed with the painter

Giuseppe Antonio Luchi Giuseppe Antonio Luchi, also known as il Diecimino, (July 17, 1709 – May 12, 1774) was an Italian painter. He was born in Diecimo, now within Borgo a Mozzano, in the now Province of Lucca. He initially trained under a doctor Azzi of Castelnuovo, ...

, also called ''il Diecimino'', who was a follower of the rococo style of

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo Giovanni Battista Tiepolo ( , ; 5 March 1696 – 27 March 1770), also known as Giambattista (or Gianbattista) Tiepolo, was an Italian painter and printmaker from the Republic of Venice who painted in the Rococo style, considered an import ...

. With his fellow apprentice

Bernardino Nocchi ] Bernardino or Giovanni Bernardino Nocchi (May 8, 1741 – January 27, 1812) was an Italian painter, mainly of sacred and historic subjects. Biography He was born in Lucca and trained there under Giuseppe Antonio Luchi until 1767. By 1769, Nocchi ...

, then moved to Rome in 1768, where they both worked with Niccolò Lapiccola. In Rome with Nocchi he painted frescoes for the Palazzo of the Cardinal Dropanni.Opere edite e inedite, Volumes 1-2
By marchese Cesare Lucchesini, Pages 116-118. He was employed by engravers to make drawings for them, and, for example, for Volpato, he drew ''Parnassus'' by

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), now generally known in English as Raphael ( , ), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of paintings by Raphael, His work is admired for its cl ...

and a ''Sibyl and two Prophets'' by

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (6March 147518February 1564), known mononymously as Michelangelo, was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was inspir ...

, ''Martyrdom'' by

Guido Reni Guido Reni (; 4 November 1575 – 18 August 1642) was an Italian Baroque painter, although his works showed a classical manner, similar to Simon Vouet, Nicolas Poussin, and Philippe de Champaigne. He painted primarily religious works, but al ...

, ''Aurora'' and ''Day & Night'' by

Guercino Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (February 8, 1591 – December 22, 1666),Miller, 1964 better known as (il) Guercino (), was an Italian Baroque painter and draftsman from Cento in the Emilia region, who was active in Rome and Bologna. The vigorous n ...

, and a Landscape by

Claude Lorraine Claude Lorrain (; born Claude Gellée , called ''le Lorrain'' in French; traditionally just Claude in English; c. 1600 – 23 November 1682) was a French painter, draughtsman and etcher of the Baroque era. He spent most of his life in I ...

. For the artist Morghen, he completed a drawing of Poussin's ''Dance of the Hours'', of Raphael's ''Jurisprudence'', ''Transfiguration'', and ''Miracle of Bolsena''; and of Murillo's ''Magdalene''. He also worked for Bettelini,

Fontana Fontana may refer to: Places Italy *Fontana Liri, comune in the Province of Frosinone *Fontanafredda, comune in the Province of Pordenone * Fontanarosa, comune in the Province of Avellino *Francavilla Fontana, comune in the Province of Brindisi ...

, and Giovanni Folo. Tofanelli also painted altarpieces, portraits, and mythological scenes. In 1781 he opened an Art School in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, but afterwards returned to Lucca, and in 1802 became Professor of Drawing in the University of San Frediano. Among his pupils was Michele Ridolfi. He died in Lucca, aged 60.

References

* 1752 births 1812 deaths 18th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 19th-century Italian painters Italian printmakers Painters from Lucca Fresco painters 19th-century Italian male artists 18th-century Italian male artists {{Italy-painter-18thC-stub