Artists
Rosalba Giovanna Carriera
- Country:
- Italy
- Birth year:
- 1675
- Death year:
- 1757
Rosalba Giovanna Carriera (1675 Venice-1757 Venice) was held in particularly high esteem as a portrait painter by her contemporaries. She received her training from Giuseppe Diamantini and Antonio balestra, but was also inspired by her brother-in-law, Giovanni Antonio Pellegrini. At first she painted miniature portraits, then turned to larger formats, concentrating on painting with pastels. She was the first to perfect the new technique of chalk painting, which made it possible to work quickly and spontaneously. She was very successful with this method and received many commissins from European courts. In 1705, she was acepted into the Accademia di San Luca in Rome, and became a member of the Academie Royale de la Peinture et Sculpture during her stay in Paris in 1720. She had a lasting effect on French pastel painting and was a genius in bringing out the character traits of her sitters in her portraits. Her pupils included the Carriera sisters and Marianna Carlevaris. Among her significant works are Portrait of a Young Girl, c. 1708, Musee de Louvre, Paris; Portrait of The Dancer Barberina Campanini, c. 1739, Gemaldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden; and Allegory of Air, 1746, Gemaldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden.