Carlo Dolci Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Carlo Dolci
Self-Portrait (1674)
Born	(1616-05-25)May 25, 1616 Florence
Died	January 17, 1686(1686-01-17) (aged 69) Florence
Nationality	Italian
Known for	Painting
Movement	Baroque

Carlo Dolci (born May 25, 1616 – died January 17, 1686) was an Italian painter from the Baroque period. He mostly worked in Florence, Italy. He was famous for his very detailed religious paintings. He often painted the same picture many times.

About Carlo Dolci
Dolci's Painting Style
Gallery
See also

About Carlo Dolci

Carlo Dolci was born in Florence, Italy. His grandfather was also a painter. Carlo was very talented from a young age. He started learning painting with Jacopo Vignali when he was young.

When he was just 11, he tried painting a full picture of St. John. He also painted a head of baby Christ. People thought his work was good.

But Dolci didn't paint many pictures quickly. His friend and writer, Baldinucci, said he would spend weeks just on one foot! Because he worked so slowly and carefully, he didn't paint large wall frescoes.

He mostly painted religious scenes. His paintings were usually small, but he did create a few life-sized ones. He often painted the same scene more than once. His daughter, Agnese Dolci, was also a painter. She made great copies of his art.

After his early works, he painted a portrait of his mother. This painting showed a new, careful style. This made him well-known in Florence and other parts of Italy. He rarely left Florence.

Dolci was known for being very religious. It is said that every year during Passion Week, he painted a picture of Jesus wearing the Crown of Thorns. In 1682, he saw another painter, Luca Giordano, work very fast. Giordano could paint more in five hours than Dolci could in months. This made Dolci feel sad.

Carlo Dolci died in Florence in 1686. His daughter, Agnese, also a painter, died around 1680.

Dolci's Painting Style

Saint Paul the Hermit, painted before 1648. This painting is in the National Museum in Warsaw.

Dolci's paintings were different from other Baroque artists. He did not use strong colors or dramatic emotions. He focused on very fine details. Some people said his paintings looked like ivory instead of real skin. This was a style also seen in earlier Florentine painters like Agnolo Bronzino.

His works often showed religious devotion. Art experts describe him as the Florentine version of Giovanni Battista Salvi da Sassoferrato. Sassoferrato was a Roman painter known for similar devotional art.

Some of his famous works include:

St Sebastian
The Four Evangelists in Florence
Christ Breaking the Bread
St Cecilia at the Organ (

St Cecilia at the Organ

)
An Adoration of the Magi in the National Gallery, London
St Catherine Reading (

St Catherine Reading

)
St Andrew praying before his Crucifixion (1646) in the Palazzo Pitti

When he was only 16, he painted a portrait of Fra Ainolfo de' Bardi. He also painted a large altarpiece in 1656 for a church in Montevarchi. This painting showed the Virgin of Soriano holding a miraculous painting of St. Dominic.