Giovanni Battista Pittoni

Italian, 1687 - 1767

BiographyGiovanni Battista Pittoni the Younger was a pupil of his uncle Francesco Pittoni and Bâlestra. Pittoni's work was also influenced by his contact with Tiepolo and Piazzetta, although his later works after 1740 remain far more formulaic and academic. He enrolled at the Accademia di S Clemente in Bologna in 1727. Later in life, his reputation was such that he was entrusted, along with Tiepolo, with the selection of members of the Venetian academy, over which he himself presided from 1758-1761, and again in 1763.

His skillful compositions feature clear, bright colours and fine, elegant forms. Pittoni was one of the finest exponents of the Venetian rococo style, and a widely-travelled artist whose work reflected the major European movements of his day. He is best known for a Martyrdom of St Thomas in the church of S Eustachio, and a Miracle of the Loaves in S Cosmo della Giudecca. A number of etchings have also been attributed to him.

"PITTONI, Giovanni Battista, or Giambattista, the Younger." In Benezit Dictionary of Artists. Oxford Art Online, http://www.oxfordartonline.com.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/subscriber/article/benezit/B00142805 (accessed April 11, 2012).

Person TypeIndividual