Paolo Veronese

Background

Paolo Veronese was born in 1528 in Verona, Venetian Republic (present-day Verona, Italy). His father, Gabriele, was a stonecutter and his mother, Catherina Caliari, was the illegitimate daughter of a nobleman, called Caliari, the name the painter adopted in the 1550's. Also, Paolo had a brother, Benedetto Caliari, who was a painter as well.

Education

Initially, Paolo studied art under the guidance of Antonio Badile, an Italian painter from Verona. In 1544, he was a student of Giovanni Francesco Caroto.

Career

In 1552, Veronese was in Mantua, where he encountered the art of Giulio Romano. The following year, Paolo worked at the Doge's Palace in Venice. He spent the rest of his life in that city, directing a large workshop, which, after his death, was taken over by his brother Benedetto and his sons Carlo and Gabriele.

Veronese responded with singular felicity to the calm and peacefulness of Titian's works and elaborated on these qualities in wonderful fresco compositions. His color is never merely applied paint — it brings to life the pale whiteness of the Palladian marble halls, which are the stage for his works: the rich color of splendid and elegantly appointed animals, the muted gleam of fine fabrics, and, above all, the blueness of the wide Venetian skies, which frame his compositions and bestow on them a smiling beauty and infinite depth.

Veronese was a master of decorative painting, but the decorative aspect of his work is only a background, against which he developed a very quiet drama of his history paintings. His portraits and history paintings usually show richly dressed and beautiful persons in a gently distanced or pensive mood, which tinges the wealth of the work with a certain melancholy.

During his lifetime, Paolo also concerned himself with the study of allegory and intermittently worked on a book of drawings with explanatory notes on the subject, but only a few fragments survived.

The great majority of Veronese's history paintings represent Christian themes. His "Temptation of St. Anthony" shows, that he was impressed with the art of Titian even before he moved to Venice, but his concern was more with demonstrating his ability to represent a complex and violent action, than with the dignity of Titian's art.

In 1555, Paolo began the decoration of the church of St. Sebastiano in Venice and returned repeatedly to it in the course of the next fifteen years. The church may be called the Pantheon of Veronese, because it represents the maturity of his art so well. Most extraordinary are the ceiling paintings, which depict the story of Esther in daring foreshortening.

Equally impressive, but more gentle are his paintings for the organ shutters of St. Sebastiano, which show, when closed, the Presentation of Christ in the Temple and, when opened, Christ at the Pool of Bethesda in a setting of classical columns, which connect the world of the painting with the view of the organ pipes. Moreover, two extremely rich scenes from the life of St. Sebastian decorate the choir of the church. One shows the saint in military dress, exhorting his fellow Christians with a grand gesture, the other depicts him naked and meekly awaiting his execution.

Among Veronese's other great works, celebrating Christian themes, are "Christ among the Doctors", "St. John Preaching" and the "Holy Family with Saints Barbara and John". More complex is the "Supper at Emmaus". The figures from sacred history are surrounded by members of the family, who commissioned the picture. They serve Christ, and their children sit at his feet.

One of the richest of Veronese's works is "The Wedding at Cana", painted for a refectory. In the center of this grandly decorative work sits Christ, whose loneliness has rarely been so affectingly and lovingly rendered. At his feet a group of musicians, in whom the likenesses of Veronese, Titian, Tintoretto and Jacopo Bassano may be recognized, performs a concert.

During his lifetime, Paolo received a number of other commissions to decorate refectories. Among these are the "Feast of St. Gregory the Great", the "Feast in the House of Simon" and the "Feast in the House of Levi".

In addition to his richly splendid works, Veronese also painted pictures, which in their composition and coloring are as quietly understated, as the actions and gestures of his heroes almost always are. Most notable among these are the "Crucifixion", in which all is silence and grief, and the very late one is "Pietà", which depicts the dead body of Christ.

Achievements

• Paolo Veronese was one of the major painters of the 16th-century Venetian school. Also, he gained prominence as a master of the use of colour, who excelled at illusionary compositions, that extend the eye beyond the actual confines of the room.
  
  His most famous works include "The Wedding at Cana", "Villa Barbaro", "Battle of Lepanto" and others.
  
  Today, Veronese’s works are held in the collections of different museums, including the Louvre Museum in Paris, the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Palazzo Ducale in Venice and others.

Works

More photos

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  • Sketch for Paradise

    (Decoration for the room of the Grand Council of the ducal...)

  • Portrait of woman with a child and a dog

  • Muse with Lyre

  • Hyman, Juno and Venus

  • Portrait of Daniele Barbaro

  • Coronation of the Virgin

  • Ceiling paintings

  • Bacchus, Vertumnus and Saturn

  • Fortune

  • Dead Christ Supported by Two Angels

  • Do not touch me

  • Conversion of St Pantaleon

  • Crucifixion

  • St Nicholas Named Bishop of Myra

  • Venus and Mars with Cupid and a Horse

  • Happy Union

  • Annunciation

  • The Triumph of Mordecai

  • Venetia between Justitia and Pax

  • St Sebastian Reproving Diocletian

  • Iseppo and Adriano da Porto

  • The Holy Family with the Infant St. John the Baptist

  • Feast at the House of Simon

  • The Triumph of Virtue over Vice

  • Moderation

  • Temptation of St. Anthony

  • Portrait of a Lady

  • End wall of the Stanza del Cane

  • The Resurrection of Christ

  • St John the Baptist Preaching

  • Adoration of the Shepherds

  • Rescue of Moses from the waters of the Nile

  • Susanna in the Bath

  • Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian

  • St Mark

  • Villa Barbaro (detail)

  • Annunciation

  • Mars and Venus

  • Portrait of a Gentlemen

  • Battle of Lepanto

  • Leda and the Swan in the Palace of Fesch Ajaccio

  • The Vision of Saint Helena

  • Venice, Hercules, and Ceres

  • Scorn

  • Three Archers

  • Aged Oriental with a Young Woman

  • Conversion of Mary Magdalene

  • The angel appears to Hagar in the desert

  • Honor and power after the death of flourishes

  • Nobleman in Hunting Attire

  • The Holy Family

  • Temptation of St Anthony

  • Portrait of a young man in black

  • Rebecca and Eliezer

  • Venus and Adonis

  • Honor

  • Portrait of a Venetian Woman

  • Olympus Room

  • Vulcan and Venus

  • Saints Mark and Marcellinus being led to Martyrdom

  • The Adoration of the Virgin by the Coccina Family

  • Lamentation over the Dead Christ

  • Unfaithfulness

  • Esther Crowned by Ahasuerus

  • Mystic Marriage of St Catherine

  • Chance Crowning a Sleeping Man

  • Jesus healing the servant of a Centurion

  • Portrait of Johann Jakob

  • Daniele Barbaro

  • Adoration of the Magi

  • Portrait of Agostino Barbarigo

  • Bathsheba Bathing

  • Adoration of the Shepherds

  • The Dream of Saint Helena

  • The Wedding at Cana

  • Music, Astronomy and Deceit

  • Respect

  • Portrait of a Young Man Wearing Lynx Fur

  • Martyrdom of St Sebastian

  • Gentleman in Black

  • Assumption

  • Music

  • The Finding of Moses

  • Iseppo and Adriano da Porto

  • Raising of the Daughter of Jairus

  • Youth between Virtue and Vice

  • Deposition of Christ

  • St Anthony Preaching to the Fish

  • Monk with a Black Boy

  • St Matthew

  • Crucifixion

  • St Luke

  • Susanna and the Elders

  • Cephalus and Procris

  • Nemesis

  • Portrait of Alessandro Vittoria

  • The Banishment of Vashti

  • Holy Family with Sts Anthony Abbot, Catherine and the Infant John the Baptist

  • Conquest of Smyrna

  • The Mystic Marriage of Sr Catherine

  • The Annunciation

  • Adoration of the Shepherds

  • Adoration of the Magi

  • Saint Barnabas healing the sick

  • Assumption of the Virgin

  • Transfiguration of Christ

  • Baptism and Temptation of Christ

  • Mystic Marriage of St Catherine

  • Minerva between the Geometry and Arithmetic

  • Livia da Porto Thiene and her Daughter Porzia

  • Jupiter Hurling Thunderbolts at the Vices

  • Muse with Tambourine

  • Portrait of architect Vincenzo Scamozzi

  • Feast in the House of Levi

  • Figures behind the Parapet

  • Siege of Scutari

  • Portrait of a Venetian Woman (La Belle Nani)

  • Virgin and Child with Saints

  • Baptism of Christ

  • Lucretia

  • Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane

  • Aristotle

  • Pietà

  • The Marriage at Cana

  • Apotheosis of Venice

  • Votive Portrait of Doge Sebastiano Venier

  • Mortal Man Guided to Divine Eternity

  • Girl in the Doorway

  • Prudence and Manly Virtue

  • Annunciation

  • Portrait of Mehmed II

  • Plato

  • Sts Mark, James and Jerome with the Dead Christ Borne by Angels

  • Christ Washing the Feet of the Disciples

  • Arachne (Dialects)

  • Religio and Fides (Religion and Faith)

  • Landscape (fresco at Villa Barbaro)

  • Martyrdom of Saint Justina

  • Martyrdom of Saint George

  • Ceres Renders Homage to Venice

  • Illusory Door

  • Mars and Venus United by Love

  • Holy Family with St Barbara and the Infant St John

  • St Sebastian

  • Feast in the House of Simon

  • Crucifixion

  • Sts Geminianus and Severus

  • The Marriage of Saint Catherine

  • Rebecca at the Well

  • Jesus among the Doctors

  • The Fainting of Esther

  • Mars and Neptune

  • The Family of Darius before Alexander

  • St John the Evangelist

  • Perseus freeing Andromeda

  • Martyrdom of St Justina

  • Adoration of the Magi

  • Mystic Marriage of St Catherine

  • Saturn (Time) and Historia

  • The Rape of Europa

  • Venus and Amor

  • St Mennas

  • The Consecration of Saint Nicholas

  • Assumption

  • Venus and Adonis

  • St. Lucy and a Donor

  • Juno Showering Gifts on Venetia

  • St Jerome

  • The Martyrdom and Last Communion of Saint Lucy

  • St Francis in Ecstasy

  • Allegory of Wisdom and Strength (The Choice of Hercules or Hercules and Omphale)

  • Bacchus and Ceres

  • Holy Family with St Catherine and the Infant St John

  • Madonna Enthroned with Child, St John the Baptist, St Louis of Toulouse and Donors

  • Healing of the Lame Man at the Pool of Bethesda

  • Madonna Enthroned with Saints

  • Last Supper

  • Boy with a Greyhound

  • Presentation in the Temple

• sketch

  • Venus and Adonis with Cupid

Connections

In 1565, Paolo married Elena Badile. Their marriage produced a daughter and four sons.

Father:

Gabriele

Mother:

Catherina Caliari

Wife:

Elena Badile

Brother:

Benedetto Caliari

mentor:

Antonio Badile

mentor:

Giovanni Francesco Caroto

References

• Paolo Veronese: A Master and His Workshop in Renaissance Venice This magnificently illustrated book displays the painter's extraordinary versatility and examine Veronese's artistic practice, concentrating on works from North American collections.
  2013
• The Art of Paolo Veronese: 1528-1588
  1989
• Paolo Veronese and the Practice of Painting in Late Renaissance Venice Focusing on Veronese’s materials, workshop organization, and remarkably varied techniques, this important book provides a rich examination of the artist’s painting practice and how it developed throughout his career — from his initial training in Verona through the height of his fame in Venice.
  2017
• Paolo Veronese: 160+ Renaissance Paintings This art book contains more than 160 reproductions of frescoes, religious, mythical and portrait subjects with title, date and interesting facts page below.
  2011
• Paolo Veronese: 118 Masterpieces This art book with foreword and annotated reproductions by Maria Tsaneva contains 118 selected paintings, drawings and frescoes of Paolo Veronese.
  2014