Ippolito Caffi Paintings

Biography

Born 1809, in Belluno, near Venice; died 20 July 1866, in Lissa.

Painter, watercolourist, draughtsman. Genre scenes, architectural views, seascapes.
Caffi was a pupil at the fine art school in Venice from 1827 to 1831, then went to Rome, where he was a drawing teacher for a number of years. In 1843, he set off for Greece, Egypt and Nubia. His work Venice Carnival was shown at the Paris Exhibition of 1846. He played an active and militant role in the Venice revolution of 1848-1849 and died at sea, on board the ship Re d’Italia, during the naval battle of Lissa. His architectural views, orientalist views, seascapes and carnivals were meticulously painted. His handling of light made the forms stand out clearly, in serene compositions with strong tonalities.

Museum and Gallery Holdings

Rennes: Desert Caravan
Trieste (Civico Mus. Revoltella): Night Festival in Venice; Roman Peasants
Venice (Ca’ Pesaro, Gal. Internazionale d’Arte Moderna): Ruins of the Ibn Tulun Mosque (1844); Simoon in the Desert (1844)