Bernardo Cavallino facts for kids
Bernardo Cavallino (born 1616, died 1656) was a talented Italian painter and artist. He is known as one of the most unique painters working in Naples during the early 1600s.
About Bernardo Cavallino
Bernardo Cavallino was born in Naples, a city in Italy. It is believed he passed away during a serious illness called the plague in 1656.
Even though his paintings are very expressive and beautiful, we don't know much about his early life or how he learned to paint. Out of about eighty paintings believed to be his, fewer than ten have his signature. He often sold his art through private art dealers and collectors, and their old records are no longer available.
People say he learned from a painter named Massimo Stanzione. He was also friends with another artist, Andrea Vaccaro. Cavallino's style was influenced by Anthony van Dyck. His paintings combine dark shadows, like those used by Caravaggio, with a sweet, dramatic feeling. This style is similar to the grand statues made during the Baroque period in Rome.
Cavallino worked with other artists in Naples who were also influenced by Stanzione. These artists included Antonio de Bellis, Artemisia Gentileschi, Francesco Francanzano, Agostino Beltrano, and Francesco Guarino.
One of his most famous paintings is Blessed Virgin, which is in the Brera Gallery in Milan. In this painting, the Virgin Mary seems to float gently from a misty background, surrounded by swirling, strong little angels. It's like a modern version of a Botticelli painting, but with a Catholic Baroque style.
His painting The Ecstasy of St Cecilia exists in two forms. One is a drawing (called a cartoon) kept at the Museo di Capodimonte in Naples. The final painted version is in the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. Another important work, Esther and Ahasuerus, can be seen at the Uffizi Gallery.
Famous Artworks
Here are some of Bernardo Cavallino's well-known paintings:
- Immaculate Conception (painted around 1640), found at the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Caen.
- Immaculate Conception (painted around 1650), located at the Brera Gallery in Milan.
- The Ecstasy of Saint Cecilia, the cartoon version, at Museo di Capodimonte, Naples.
- The Ecstasy of Saint Cecilia, the final painting, at Palazzo Vecchio, Florence.
- Esther and Ahasuerus, at the Uffizi Gallery, Florence.
- Adoration of the Magi
- Gaius Mucius Scaevola Confronting King Porsenna
- Saint John the Baptist
- Clavicord Player
- Hercules and Omphale
- Adoration of the Shepherds
- The Vision of Saint Dominic
- Lot and his Daughters
- Virgin Annunciate (painted around 1645–50), at the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, Australia.
- Woman Playing the Clavichord
See also
In Spanish: Bernardo Cavallino para niños