Luigi Mussini, Portrait of a Dominican Father, 1860, Oil on Canvas, Framed

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Luigi Mussini, Portrait of a Dominican Father, 1860, taken from the front, half-length, against a dark green background. He wears … Read more Luigi Mussini, Portrait of a Dominican Father, 1860, taken from the front, half-length, against a dark green background. He wears a buttoned surplice and a white habit rendered with masterful brushstrokes for a silky, iridescent effect. He depicts a middle-aged, almost bald father, his face turned slightly to the right, his gaze intense, stern, or at least thoughtful, as evidenced by his furrowed brows and pursed lips. The simplicity of the composition and the vivid rendering place the portrait of the priest within the purist Tuscan painting culture of the mid-19th century.

The work, oil on canvas, is in good condition. It comes from a private collection in Milan and is housed in a beautiful wooden frame carved with shells and scrolls, and gilded with Mecca.

On the back is an inscription with the artist's signature and date: L. Mussini a vitarciano? October 1860.

Luigi Mussini (Berlin 1813 – Siena 1888) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence, where he studied under Pietro Benvenuti and Giuseppe Bezzuoli.

In 1840, he won a scholarship to Rome, where he remained for four years studying painting. He was inspired by the fifteenth-century masters and in 1844 opened a school in Florence: his students included Silvestro Lega and Michele Gordigiani.

In 1848, he abandoned his paintbrushes to volunteer for the First War of Independence. Disillusioned by the unhappy outcome, he went to Paris, where he frequented Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, Hippolyte Flandrin, William Haussoullier, and other artists.

In 1851, he moved to Siena, where he became director of the Academy of Fine Arts, a position he held for 37 years, until his death. At the Siena Academy, he taught, among others, Angelo Visconti, Amos Cassioli, Cesare Maccari, Giuseppe Catani Chiti, Pietro Aldi and Alessandro Franchi, and Antonio Ridolfi. He married Luigia Piaggio, who died in childbirth, giving birth to their only daughter, Luisa, who also became a painter. See less