 francesco hayez (; 10 february 1791 â 21 december 1881) was an italian painter, the leading artist of romanticism in mid-19th-century milan, renowned for his grand historical paintings, political allegories and exceptionally fine portraits. ==biography== ulysses at the court of alcinous (1814-15)|thumb|left|150px|ulysses at the court of alcinous hayez came from a relatively poor family from venice. his father was of french origin while his mother, chiara torcella, was from murano. the child francesco, youngest of five sons, was brought up by his mother's sister, who had married giovanni binasco, a well-off shipowner and collector of art. from childhood he showed a predisposition for drawing, so his uncle apprenticed him to an art restorer. later he became a student of the painter francesco maggiotto with whom he continued his studies for three years. he was admitted to the painting course of the new academy of fine arts in 1806, where he studied under teodoro matteini. in 1809 he won a competition from the academy of venice for one year of study at the accademia di san luca in rome. he remained in rome until 1814, then moved to naples where he was commissioned by joachim murat to paint a major work depicting ulysses at the court of alcinous. in the mid-1830s he attended the "salotto maffei" salon in milan, hosted by clara maffei (whose portrait hayez painted for her husband), and he was still in milan in 1850 when he was appointed director of the academy of brera there. francesco hayez lived long and was prolific. his output spanned both historic paintings, including those that would have appealed to the patriotic sensibility of his patrons. others reflect the desire to accompany a neoclassic style to grand themes, either from biblical or classical literature. he also painted scenes from theatrical presentations of his day. conspicuously lacking from his output, however, are altarpieces intended for devotional display. however, after the napoleonic invasions deconsecrated many churches and convents in northern italy, the region was not lacking for religious artworks that were removed either to museums or concentrated in the remaining active religious institutions. corrado ricci describes him as starting as a classicist but then evolving to a style of emotional t
1791_births 1882_deaths 18th-century_Italian_painters 19th-century_Italian_painters 19th-century_painters_of_historical_subjects Academic_art Brera_Academy_faculty Italian_artists Italian_people_of_French_descent Italian_portrait_painters Italian_romantic_painters People_from_Venice_(city) Venetian_painters