Antonio Bresciani (1720-1817) - Santo in preghiera

Original sanguine drawing by Antonio Bresciani; the drawing shows a small tear at the bottom near the signature, as in the attached photo. Antonio Bresciani (Piacenza, November 8, 1720[1] – Parma, October 31, 1817[1]) was an Italian painter and engraver. Antonio Bresciani was born in Piacenza on November 8, 1720, to Angelo, a soldier in charge of munitions in the citadel of the town; his father died in 1730.[1][2] Antonio trained in the early years under Carlo Antonio Bianchi and subsequently under Giovanni Battista Tagliasacchi, active in those years in the Emilia town. In 1740 he was urged by his mother to move to Bologna, where he worked for several years in Donato Creti’s workshop. He returned permanently in 1748 or 1749 to his native city, where as early as 1747 he had painted two works depicting the Stories of Saint Ulderico for the church of Sant’Ulderico, later moved to the Basilica of San Giovanni in Canale.[1][2][3] Alongside painting, he also undertook engraving, producing some works as early as 1749, followed in 1750 by the first reproductions of Guercino’s frescoes on the cathedral dome[N 1].[1] Soon after he moved to Parma, where in 1752 he was named professor at the Academy of Fine Arts, founded in the same year by the Duke Philip of Bourbon, who later appointed him court painter.[1][3] Despite a classically styled and very traditionalist approach, inspired mainly in the early years by Venetian Baroque paintings and by the Bologna-born painter Lorenzo Pasinelli, Antonio Bresciani received numerous and varied commissions throughout his long career, both public and private, across the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza.[1][3][4] To a lesser extent, he also worked outside the state's borders, producing works in Reggio, Asti, Mantua, and Milan.[1] In 1777 he was named honorary academician of Bologna’s Clementine Academy.[5] He remained active into advanced age and also produced numerous drawings[N 2]; his last engravings date to 1815, published within his Compendium of the Lives of the Parmense Saints and Blesseds.[1] He lived in Parma until his death, which occurred on October 31, 1817.[1]

Estimate:£211.8

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