• 

  Louvre

  Paris, France

  3 works

  Museum details
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  Art Gallery of South Australia

  North Terrace, Australia

  1 works

  Museum detailsMap
• 

  Musée Granet

  Aix-en-Provence, France

  1 works

  Museum detailsMap
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  Musei di Strada Nuova

  Genoa, Italy

  1 works

  Museum detailsMap

Plan your visit to see Mattia Preti →

• What is Mattia Preti's most famous work?+

  It is difficult to name a single most famous work by Mattia Preti. He produced many paintings, and his artistic output varied over the course of his career. He is known for paintings such as The Fall of the Rebel Angels (1666). This oil on canvas measures 419cm x 283cm and is located in the Kunscthistorisches Museum, Vienna. Preti also painted San Girolamo Scrivente (1607), Ritratto di Wignacourt con paggio (1608), and Decollazione del Battista (1608). San Girolamo Scrivente is an oil on canvas, measuring 117cm x 157cm, and can be found at the Museum of the Co-cathedral of St John, Valletta. Ritratto di Wignacourt con paggio is an oil on canvas, measuring 195cm x 134cm, and is located in the Musée du Louvre, Paris. Decollazione del Battista is an oil on canvas, measuring 361cm x 520cm, and is located at the Co-cathedral of St John, Oratory, Valletta.
• What should I know about Mattia Preti's prints?+

  Mattia Preti (1613-1699) was an Italian Baroque artist who spent much of his career in Naples and Malta. While he is known primarily as a painter, some prints were made after his compositions. These prints reproduce his paintings and extend their availability to a wider audience. Preti's paintings often show a strong use of light and shadow (chiaroscuro), a technique he adopted from early Guercino. His theatrical style was well suited to the artistic tastes prevalent in Naples and Sicily during his lifetime. Preti's prints, like those of other Baroque-era painters, provide insight into the artistic interests and collecting habits of the period. Although Preti's work was not always well known outside specialist circles, interest in his paintings grew in the later 20th century. Prints offer another way to appreciate his artistic output.
• What style or movement did Mattia Preti belong to?+

  Mattia Preti, born in Calabria in 1613, is generally associated with the broad sphere of Neapolitan painting and the Caravaggesque tradition. He is considered a protagonist of southern Italian painting in the mid-seventeenth century. Preti trained in Calabria before moving to Rome to work with his brother Gregorio. His talent led to recognition in artistic and aristocratic circles. In 1642, at twenty-nine, he was admitted to the Order of the Knights of Malta. Caravaggio's influence is evident in Preti's work, particularly in his direct realism and handling of light. However, Preti combined Caravaggio's naturalistic style with other influences. The classicism of the Bolognese school and the theatrical Baroque style of Pietro da Cortona are apparent in his frescoes for Sant' Andrea della Valle in Rome. He also drew inspiration from sixteenth-century Venetian masters, and he travelled to northern Italy. Preti's five-year stay in Naples, beginning in 1656, coincided with the most active period of his career. His major works from this time combine Caravaggesque tenebrism with the richness of Venetian painters such as Titian and Paolo Veronese. This combination marked a turning point for the Neapolitan school, moving it away from the realism of Ribera towards the compositions of Luca Giordano.
• What techniques or materials did Mattia Preti use?+

  Mattia Preti's painting methods involved the use of oil-based binders, particularly linseed oil. Analysis of paintings from the 16th century reveals the prevalence of oil techniques, with linseed oil favoured over walnut oil. The process of identifying these binders involves analysing the fatty acid composition in paint fragments through gas chromatography. High levels of azelaic acid indicate drying oil, while lesser amounts suggest egg-based binders. Pyrolysis gas chromatography is employed, heating paint samples to induce separation of organic substances. The resulting chromatogram is compared with known paint mediums. Micro-analytical tests, including solubility differentials and microscopic examination under ultraviolet radiation, further analyse paint layers. Examination of cross-sections shows that most of the paint was thinly applied.
• What was Mattia Preti known for?+

  Mattia Preti, born in Calabria, Italy, in 1613, is recognised as a significant figure in southern Italian painting. He is broadly associated with the Neapolitan school and the Caravaggesque tradition. Preti's early training took place in Calabria, after which he moved to Rome to work with his brother Gregorio. His talent soon gained him attention in artistic circles. In 1642, he was admitted to the Order of the Knights of Malta, an honour previously bestowed upon Caravaggio. Caravaggio's influence is evident in Preti's work, particularly in his use of direct realism and light. However, Preti also incorporated other influences into his style. He was influenced by the classicism of the Bolognese school and the Baroque style of Pietro da Cortona, seen in his frescoes for Sant' Andrea della Valle in Rome. He also travelled to northern Italy, drawn to the colours of sixteenth-century Venetian masters. A turning point in Preti's career came during a stay in Naples from 1656 to 1660. Here, he combined Caravaggesque tenebrism with the richness of Venetian painters like Titian and Paolo Veronese. In 1661, he became the official painter of the Order of Malta, where he spent nearly forty years producing works for churches and residences. He died in Malta in 1699.
• When did Mattia Preti live and work?+

  Mattia Preti, also known as Il Cavaliere Calabrese, was born in Taverna, Calabria, in 1613. He died in Valletta, Malta, in 1699. Preti's artistic journey began in Rome around 1630, where he joined his brother. His early style was influenced by the Roman High Baroque, particularly artists such as Lanfranco and Cortona. Later, he developed his own style, incorporating elements of Guercino and Venetian colour techniques. He spent time in Modena, from 1653 to 1656, where he frescoed the apse and dome of San Biagio. Between 1656 and 1659, Preti created votive images in Naples, during a plague outbreak. From 1661, he lived in Malta as a Knight Hospitaller, producing numerous works for churches and private residences. He decorated the church of San Giovanni in Valletta with "Scenes from the Life of St John the Baptist".
• Where can I see Mattia Preti's work?+

  Paintings by Mattia Preti are held in collections across Europe. The Galleria dell’ Accademia Carrara in Bergamo holds his Still Life with Musical Instruments (circa 1650). The Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna possesses The Fall of the Rebel Angels (1666). Other artists' works are held in museums such as the Musée Fesch, the Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, University of Birmingham. Additional museums include the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Caen, the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, and the Musée Condé. Further afield, one may find works at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Copenhagen, the Detroit Institute of Arts, and the Hermitage Museum in Leningrad. British collections include the Dulwich College Picture Gallery and the National Gallery.
• Where was Mattia Preti from?+

  Mattia Preti was born in 1613 in Taverna, Calabria, a region in southern Italy. He is sometimes referred to as "Il Cavaliere Calabrese" (the Calabrian Knight), a reference to his origins and his membership in the Order of St John, to which he was admitted in 1642. Preti received his initial artistic training in Calabria, possibly within a family workshop. Around 1630, he moved to Rome with his brother Gregorio, where he studied the work of Caravaggio and other artists. Although he travelled extensively throughout Italy, with documented stays in Modena, Parma, Bologna and Venice, Preti maintained ties to his birthplace, sending paintings to churches in Taverna. Later in his career, in 1661, Preti was invited to Malta by the Order of St John, where he spent nearly forty years decorating churches and residences. He died in Valletta, Malta, in 1699 and is buried in St John's Co-Cathedral.
• Who did Mattia Preti influence?+

  Mattia Preti's artistic impact is complex. While no single artist can be said to have directly imitated him, his work contributed to the broader development of the Baroque style, and echoes of his approach can be found in later artists. Titian, active a century before Preti, exerted a considerable influence on artists. Annibale Carracci, for example, absorbed aspects of Titian's style, such as atmospheric settings and figure types. Carracci's work, in turn, helped initiate the Baroque style in Rome. Similarly, both Tintoretto and Veronese were indebted to Titian, though they interpreted his work differently. Tintoretto amplified the drama he found in Titian, while Veronese focused on compositional elements and colour. Their paintings served as avenues of approach to Titian for later generations. Caravaggio's dramatic realism influenced artists, including Hendrick ter Brugghen, Gerrit van Honthorst, and Rembrandt van Rijn, as well as Simon Vouet, and Diego Velázquez. His paintings' ambiguities have been seen as influential on modern art.
• Who influenced Mattia Preti?+

  Mattia Preti, a painter of the Italian Baroque, absorbed a range of influences from earlier artists. Venetian painting, particularly the work of Titian, played a significant role in his artistic development. During the 16th century, a number of artists from the Venice region rose to prominence. These artists, including Annibale Carracci, were indebted to Titian and his followers. Carracci, who helped initiate the Baroque style, was conversant with art in Venice. His "Venus Adorned by the Graces" displays stylistic elements derived from Titian, such as the atmospheric setting, corpulent figures, facial types, and feathery, suggestive handling of the background. The theory of artistic imitation involved a process of copying, variation, and surpassing the model. Artists selected exemplary figures for guidance, and their adaptations served as both homage and a display of their own skill.
• Who is mattia preti?+

  Mattia Preti, also known as "Il Cavalier Calabrese", was born in Taverna, Calabria, in 1613. He was a painter who moved to Rome in 1630 and later became a Knight of the Order of Saint John in 1660.
• Who was Mattia Preti?+

  Mattia Preti (1613-1699) was an Italian Baroque painter who enjoyed international recognition during his lifetime. Born in Taverna, Calabria, he is sometimes referred to as "il Cavaliere Calabrese" because of his origins and his knighthood in the Order of St. John. Preti's early training is believed to have been under Battistello Caracciolo, a Neapolitan artist working in the Caravaggist style. Around 1630, Preti moved to Rome, where he studied the work of Caravaggio and his followers. His early paintings, such as *The Concert*, reflect this influence, with theatrical figures, dramatic lighting, and close foregrounds. He also became familiar with the Neo-Venetian style popularised by Pietro da Cortona and Nicolas Poussin. Preti received a knighthood from the Order of St. John in 1642. In 1653, he moved to Modena to work on frescoes in the Church of San Biagio. By 1656, he had relocated to Naples, where he produced votive images related to the plague. In 1661, Preti was invited to Malta by the Order of St. John. There, he created several altarpieces and frescoes, including scenes from the life of St. John the Baptist in the Co-Cathedral of Valletta. He remained in Malta until his death in 1699 and was buried in the Co-Cathedral.