Luca Giordano

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  Louvre

  Paris, France

  23 works

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  Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux

  Bordeaux, France

  2 works

  

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  Art Gallery of South Australia

  North Terrace, Australia

  2 works

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  Temple Newsam

  Leeds, United Kingdom

  2 works

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  Bolton Museum

  Bolton, United Kingdom

  1 works

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  National Gallery of Armenia

  Yerevan, Armenia

  1 works

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• What is Luca Giordano's most famous work?+

  Although Luca Giordano produced a large number of paintings, he is best known for his fresco cycles. These decorate many important churches and palaces, particularly in Naples and Florence. His fresco work in Florence includes the ceiling of the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi's gallery (c. 1682). This large-scale commission cemented his reputation outside Naples. The subject is the Apotheosis of the Medici. It uses illusionistic perspective, a common feature of Baroque ceiling painting. Giordano also completed significant fresco cycles in Naples. These include works in the Tesoro di San Martino (1687-1689) and the church of San Gregorio Armeno. In Spain, he decorated ceilings in the Buen Retiro Palace and Casón del Buen Retiro. These have since been destroyed. He also worked at the Escorial, near Madrid, on ceilings in the church and sacristy (1692-1694). These Spanish commissions, for Charles II, occupied the final years of the artist's career. While individual easel paintings such as "The Judgement of Paris" are well-regarded, his large decorative schemes are considered his most important artistic contribution.
• What should I know about Luca Giordano's prints?+

  Luca Giordano (1634-1705) was a prolific Italian painter and printmaker from Naples. While celebrated for his large-scale frescoes and oil paintings, his prints offer a more accessible entry point into his artistic world. Giordano's prints display his skill in etching and his engagement with various subjects, including religious scenes, mythological narratives, and allegorical compositions. His style often shows the influence of other artists, such as Rembrandt. Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione was fascinated by Rembrandt's prints, especially for themes and linear patterns. Prints in the 17th century also served as a means of advertising collections. Illustrated books containing reproductive prints allowed collectors to display their treasures and inspire admiration. "Theatrum Pictorium" (1660), organised by David Teniers, was the first illustrated book on a single picture collection. When assessing old master prints, condition and provenance are important. Certificates of authenticity are not always reliable, as connoisseurship is not an exact science.
• What style or movement did Luca Giordano belong to?+

  Luca Giordano (1634-1705) was an Italian painter of the late Baroque period. He is known for his speed and facility, earning him the nickname "Luca fa presto" (Luca paints quickly). Giordano's style is characterised by its theatricality, dynamism, and use of colour. He was influenced by a range of artists, including Peter Paul Rubens, Paolo Veronese, and the Spanish painter Jusepe de Ribera. He synthesised these influences into a distinctive personal style. Giordano's work can be seen as part of the broader Baroque movement, which emphasised drama, emotion, and grandeur. However, his style also anticipates some aspects of the Rococo, particularly in its lightness and decorative qualities. His impact on Neapolitan painting was substantial. He also worked extensively in Spain during the final decade of his life, where he executed commissions for the royal family. His work there influenced the development of Spanish Baroque painting.
• What techniques or materials did Luca Giordano use?+

  Luca Giordano was a prolific painter who worked in both fresco and oil. He was known for his speed and ability to imitate other artists' styles, which allowed him to adapt his techniques to suit different commissions and locations. For frescoes, Giordano would have employed the traditional Italian method of buon fresco, painting directly onto wet lime plaster. This required a rapid, resolute hand, as the artist had to complete each section (giornata) before the plaster dried. In oil painting, Giordano likely used a drying oil medium, such as linseed or walnut oil. The preparation of colours may have involved grinding pigments and tempering them with oil. He may have employed brushes of various sizes and softness to achieve different effects. His palette seems to have favoured strong colours.
• What was Luca Giordano known for?+

  Luca Giordano (1634-1705) was an Italian painter from Naples. He trained with his father, Antonio, and with Jusepe de Ribera. Giordano is considered an important figure in Neapolitan Baroque painting; he moved beyond local styles, especially exploring Roman influences, such as Pietro da Cortona. Contemporaries nicknamed him "fa presto" (do it quickly) due to his speed of execution; estimates place his output at over 5,000 paintings. He also had a noted ability to copy other artists' styles. Initially influenced by Ribera, Giordano later incorporated elements of Rubens, van Dyck, and the Venetian painters, Titian and Veronese, after a trip to northern Italy in the 1650s. Charles II summoned him to the Spanish court in 1692, where he produced major works, including frescoes in the San Lorenzo church at Escorial and bible scenes in the Buen Retiro palace near Madrid. One of his last important works was a fresco in the cupola of Tesoro Certosa di San Martino.
• When did Luca Giordano live and work?+

  Luca Giordano was born in Naples in 1634 and died there in 1705. He is regarded as an important figure in Italian art, specifically Neapolitan painting, during a period of transition from the mid-seventeenth century to the early eighteenth century. Contemporaries nicknamed him "Luca Fa Presto" because of his speed; it is estimated that he produced over 5,000 oil paintings. He also had the ability to copy any style. Giordano trained in Naples with his father, Antonio, and with Jusepe de Ribera. He was influenced by Ribera's naturalism, itself derived from Caravaggio. He travelled to Rome, Florence, and Venice, where he became familiar with the work of Rubens, van Dyck, and Cortona, as well as Venetian painters such as Titian and Veronese. Around 1654, Giordano received a commission for paintings in San Pietro ad Aram, Naples. Later in his career, Charles II summoned him to the Spanish court in 1692, where he worked for ten years.
• Where can I see Luca Giordano's work?+

  Luca Giordano's paintings can be found in numerous museums and collections around the world. In Europe, his work is held by the Hermitage Museum (Saint Petersburg), the Prado Museum (Madrid), and the Staatliche Museen (Berlin). In the UK, you can find paintings by Giordano at the National Gallery, Dulwich College Picture Gallery, and the Wallace Collection, all in London; and at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham. Other European cities with Giordano paintings include Les Andelys (Hotel de Ville), Dresden (Staatliche Kunstsammlungen), and Copenhagen (The Royal Museum of Fine Arts). Outside of Europe, museums holding his paintings include the National Gallery of Victoria (Melbourne), the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Detroit Institute of Arts, and the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University (Cambridge, Massachusetts). Some of his paintings are in private collections, such as those of Sir Anthony Blunt (London) and Lawrence Gowing (Lambourn, Berkshire).
• Where was Luca Giordano from?+

  Luca Giordano was from Naples. He was born there in 1634 and died there in 1705. Giordano trained in Naples, first with his father, Antonio, and later with Jusepe de Ribera. He developed an appreciation for naturalism, which was derived from Caravaggio. Giordano travelled extensively. He visited Rome, Florence, and Venice. These travels exposed him to a wide range of artistic styles. He studied the works of masters such as Rubens, van Dyck, and Pietro da Cortona, as well as Venetian painters such as Titian and Veronese. Giordano's exposure to Venetian art led him to abandon his early chiaroscuro style for something more dynamic. His travels influenced his artistic development. He became known for his ability to assimilate and integrate diverse influences into his own work. He was called "Luca Fa Presto" because of his speed.
• Who did Luca Giordano influence?+

  Luca Giordano's influence is widespread. Immediately after his death, many important painters adopted elements of his style. Rubens, Velázquez, and Pietro da Cortona echoed his compositions or copied his techniques. Within a generation, entire schools of Caravaggisti emerged in both Italy and the Netherlands. French art was also significantly affected; Valentin de Boulogne and Georges de La Tour show his influence. The location of the French Academy in Rome, near many of Caravaggio's altarpieces, may have contributed to this. Interest in his art resurged during the Neoclassical and Romantic periods. Joseph Wright of Derby's 1768 *Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump* transformed a scientific demonstration into a modern miracle reminiscent of Caravaggio's paintings. Jacques-Louis David depicted the dead Marat as one of Caravaggio's martyrs. Théodore Géricault's *The Raft of the Medusa* (1819) can be seen as a secular version of a Caravaggio altarpiece.
• Who influenced Luca Giordano?+

  Figuring out the influences on an artist is complex. Luca Giordano, an Italian painter, lived from 1634 to 1705. Caravaggio was an important figure in Italian art because he brought back naturalism. He is known for his use of tenebrism, a style using strong contrasts between light and dark. Some people criticised Caravaggio, saying he hid his lack of drawing skill by shrouding figures in darkness, and that he relied too much on real life for his subjects. Giovan Pietro Bellori, writing in the late seventeenth century, saw Caravaggio as important because he brought naturalism back to Italian art. Bellori's artistic hero, however, was Annibale Carracci. Other artists who followed Caravaggio include Ribera and Baglione, along with artists such as Guido Reni and Lanfranco.
• Who was luca giordano?+

  Luca Giordano (1634-1705) was a Neapolitan painter and printmaker of the late Baroque period. He received early training from his father, Antonio, and later from Jusepe de Ribera. Giordano was known as "Luca fa presto" ("Luke does it quickly") because of his speed and facility. He was a prolific artist; the number of his oil paintings is estimated to be over 5,000. He also had a remarkable ability to imitate the styles of other artists. Early in his career, Ribera influenced him, but Giordano later incorporated elements of Rubens, van Dyck, and Pietro da Cortona. Visits to northern Italy exposed him to Titian and Veronese. His career took him to Rome, Florence, and Venice. In 1692, Charles II summoned him to the Spanish court, where he produced major works in Madrid and Escorial. Giordano returned to Naples in 1702. One of his last significant works was a fresco in the cupola of Tesoro Certosa di San Martino. His airy compositions and delicate colours look forward to eighteenth-century painters such as Giovanni Battista Tiepolo.
• Why are Luca Giordano's works important today?+

  Luca Giordano (1634-1705) was an Italian Baroque painter. He is remembered for his speed and prolific output, completing commissions across Italy and Spain. Giordano's importance lies in his synthesis of different artistic styles. He drew inspiration from the Roman High Baroque style, Venetian colourism, and the naturalism of artists like Caravaggio. This blending of influences created a distinctive and dynamic approach to painting. His impact can be seen in the work of later artists. His decorative schemes and illusionistic ceiling paintings influenced generations of painters. His ability to work in diverse styles also made him a sought-after artist during his lifetime. He left behind a substantial body of work that continues to be studied.