Giacomo Mantegazza (Saronno 1853 - Cernobbio 1920)

Giacomo Mantegazza (Saronno 1853-1920), "In the Harem", early 20th century. Oil on canvas, 90 x 48 cm within a gilded frame of the time. This canvas by Giacomo Mantegazza, entitled In the Harem, depicting a young woman in oriental-style clothing, is a clear example of the aesthetic taste of the fin de siècle. The female figure is seated on a small sofa covered with a Persian carpet; the setting is dark but richly decorated: the wallpaper in the background, depicting two peacocks; the damask green cushion, the tiger skin with stuffed head, the brass incense holder in Islamic style; in its forms it resembles the chandelier hanging from the ceiling, also in brass, in which we can notice the detail of the light bulbs. The scene is dominated by a chromatism made of malachite greens, red clays and ochre; the interior is almost entirely in dim light if it were not for the girl in the center of the depiction. It almost seems that her diaphanous complexion and, the more romantic would say, her smile, are the source of light of the work: this impression is not only betrayed by the straw-colored aura that surrounds her, but also by the reflections of the large decorative silver plate that she holds, in a curious play of light and shadow. The beautiful girl with auburn hair is embellished with luminous jewels and golden trinkets, adorned in light organza veils and only rests the tips of her toes on the floor, as if she were, at any moment, to get up and begin to dance gracefully for us spectators. Despite the size of the painting, Mantegazza's fine and meticulous brushwork manages to perfectly render every minute detail; it is precisely here that his undeniable mastery is noticeable. BIOGRAPHY Giacomo Mantegazza was born in Saronno in 1853; showing artistic inclination from an early age, he enters as a shop boy within the workshop of Girolamo Induno, where under the guidance of the master he learns the basics of painting. He later enrolled at the Brera Academy, becoming a student of the Romantic painter Giuseppe Bertini; very young, in 1871 he made his debut with two Studies from life at the Promotrice of Turin, while the following year he presented two genre paintings at the exhibition, including Fraternal Love, which he also proposed at the Milan exhibition along with New Smokers. During the youthful but highly successful years of his career, he dedicated himself to nostalgic genre paintings, in the Rococo style, which represent the happy and somewhat frivolous reality of an ideal Lombard 18th century. In 1873 he took Prejudice for love to Florence and to Turin the following year also Love Messenger; in 1877 then he presented himself at the national exhibition in Naples with "First Steps" and three years later he returned again to Turin at the exhibition with The blessing of the beasts in Lombardy. In the last two decades of the 19th century he presented his paintings at exhibitions in various cities in Italy, including Genoa and Rome, in which in 1883 he sent New Spouses and The Contrasted Rose to the national exhibition, as well as to Venice, when four years later he sent Good Friday and A Novel to the national exhibition of the city. Among the themes and subjects represented he also implements scenes of contemporaneity and paintings on Risorgimento and patriotic themes, with the same naturalness and pictorial sensibility that have made him known; thanks to his extremely meticulous painting, success also comes through portrait commissions. In 1895 Mantegazza participated in a competition announced by the publisher Hoepli for the illustrations of a reprint of the Betrothed, to which the painter presented 180 tables in which he illustrates with finesse and concrete narrativity the Manzoni's novel; unfortunately he does not win the prize money. Although the artist's preferred media are easel painting and watercolor, as demonstrated by the conspicuous presence of works executed with these media, in 1904 he dedicated himself to the frescoes in the Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin of Miracles, specifically those present in the Chapel of the Deposition, in his hometown, Saronno. He continues to exhibit, although more sporadically, until 1912; he died in Cernobbio in 1920.