Vito D'Anna (14 October 1718 – 13 October 1769) was an Italian painter, considered the most prominent painter of Palermitan rococo and one of the most important artists of Sicily.

Vito D'Anna
Vito D'Anna, Self portrait, 1763.
Born(1718-10-14)14 October 1718
Palermo, Italy
Died13 October 1769(1769-10-13) (aged 50)
Palermo, Italy
NationalityItalian
Known forPainter
Notable workApotheosis of St. Dominic
Apotheosis of Palermo
Allegory of Political Virtues
Glory of the Princes of Resuttana
Glory of St. Basil
MovementBaroque, Rococo

Biography edit

He was the father of Alessandro D'Anna, the brother-in-law of Francesco Sozzi, and the son-in-law of Olivio Sozzi.

He studied in Acireale under Pietro Paolo Vasta from 1736 to 1744, when he returned to Palermo. In Acireale, he had painted Portrait of the Provost Gambino.[1] Returning to Palermo, Vito married the daughter of the Catanese painter Olivio Sozzi. Sozzi helped arrange D'Anna to work with the circle of an aged Corrado Giaquinto in Rome.

D'Anna frescoed a number of palaces, and the churches of San Sebastiano, San Matteo and del Salvatore in Palermo. Among his works were: his fresco of the Madonna dei Raccomandati in the church of the same name, his Nativity in the church della Grotta, Self-portrait in the Pinacoteca Zelantea.[2] His nephew, Giuseppe Patania, was also a painter.

Works edit

 
Triumph of the Souls in Purgatory, 1754. San Matteo al Cassaro, Palermo.
  • Apotheosis of St. Dominic or Gloria dei santi domenicani, 1751, frescos of the dome, church Santa Caterina, Palermo.
  • The Triumph of Minerva, 1751, fresco, Palazzo Benenati Ventimiglia, Palermo.
  • Allegory of Virtues, 1751, frescos, Palazzo Benenati Ventimiglia, Palermo.
  • Il Trionfo dei Re Magi, 1751–52, fresco, Chiasa dei Tre Re, Palermo.
  • Trinità, oil on wood, Palazzo Abatellis, Palermo.
  • Apotheosis of Palermo, 1760, fresco of the ballroom, Palazzo Isnello, Palermo.
  • Allegory of Political Virtues, 1762, fresco of the ballroom, Palazzo Alliata di Pietratagliata, Palermo.[3]
  • Glory of the Princes of Resuttana, 1762, fresco of the ballroom, Villa Resuttana, Palermo.
  • Glory of St. Basil, 1763–65, frescos, church of Santissimo Salvatore, Palermo.

Honors edit

See also edit

References edit

Bibliography edit

  • Agostino Gallo, manuscript, 19th century.
  • Renato Roli, Giancarlo Sestieri. I disegni italiani del Settecento. Treviso, Canova Edizioni, 1982. ISBN 88-85066-03-8
  • Dizionario biografico degli italiani, 32nd issue. Rome, Enciclopedia Italiana, 1986.[4]
  • Citti Siracusano, La pittura del Settecento in Sicilia. Rome, De Luca, 1986.
  • Giuliano Briganti (editor). La Pittura in Italia. Il Settecento, volume 2. Milan, Electa, 1990. ISBN 978-88-435-3279-7
  • Sergio Troisi, Vito D'Anna. Palermo, «Kalos», issue 4, July/August, 1993.
  • Giulia Sommariva. Palazzi nobiliari di Palermo. Palermo, Dario Flaccovio, 2004. ISBN 88-7758-598-6
  • Mariny Guttilla. Mirabile artificio. Pittura religiosa in Sicilia dal XV al XIX secolo. Palermo, Kalos, 2006. ISBN 88-89224-27-4
  • Mariny Guttilla (editor). Cantieri decorativi a Palermo dal tardo barocco alle soglie del neoclassicismo, in Il Settecento e il suo doppio.[5] Palermo, Kalós, 2008, p. 177–206. ISBN 978-88-89224-67-0

Notes edit

  1. ^ The portrait of Gambino is found in the sacristy of the Acireale Cathedral
  2. ^ Galleria Zelantea, notes on arts in Acireale.
  3. ^ Storia di Palazzo Alliata di Pietratagliata Archived 5 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
  4. ^ M. G. Paolini. Vito D'Anna – Biography at the Enciclopedia Italiana. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
  5. ^ Il Settecento e il suo doppio. Table of contents. Central Institute for restoration and preservation of books – OPAC. Retrieved 1 September 2010.

External links edit