Salvator Rosa
Salvator Rosa was a Baroque painter from Italy who lived from 1615 to 1673. He is most remembered for his sublime landscapes, though he created a large number of history paintings as well. His unique, dark, and rugged depictions of the power of nature led to the development of romanticism in art. A man of many talents, Rosa was not only a painter, but a musician, poet, etcher, writer, playwright, and often acted in his own plays. He was one of the most famous artists of his day, equally earning fans and enemies alike from his candid views on various subjects.
Rosa was born just outside of the city of Naples in Italy in 1615. His father wanted him to be a priest, but Rosa realized his love for art early on. His earliest art training was an apprenticeship with his brother-in-law, Francesco Fracanzano. The death of Rosa’s father when he was just 17 years old expedited his art output and career, as he needed to sell paintings to help with his family’s financial situation.
Rosa was one of the first artists to paint sublime and wild landscapes that leaned toward romanticism. He was extremely successful in his lifetime, where his work was immediately recognized for his mastery. Rosa’s landscapes strongly influenced future artists, including the landscape master, Joseph Turner. Rosa is remembered for being somewhat rebellious. Compared to other artists of his time who were constrained in their work by the tastes of patrons, Rosa was very independent, though not because he was wealthy. He refused to paint commissions, chose his own subjects, and didn’t discuss prices beforehand. He was outwardly exotic and painted purely for his own satisfaction. Through his own satirical pieces, Rosa critiqued other artists and social structures of the time. As such, he made himself a large number of enemies.
Rosa’s unique and shifting social standing induced by his art reputation motivated him to move from Nice to Rome to Florence and back to Rome in an effort to avoid enemies. While in Florence, he worked briefly for the famous Medici family and met the woman who would become his muse and longtime mistress and future wife, Lucrezia Paolini, whose husband had abandoned her. However, Rose shied away from relying on patrons to keep himself and his art independent. After developing a severe case of dropsy, abnormal fluid in the skin, Salvator Rosa died just 6 months later in 1673 at 58 years old. In his final months, he married Lucrezia Paolini, his longtime partner and mother of his children.
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