Benedetto Luti (17 November 1666 – 17 June 1724) was an Italian Baroque painter, draftsman, and .[
]
Early life
Luti was born in Florence on 17 November 1666. He trained under Anton Domenico Gabbiani before moving to Rome in 1690.[ "Benedetto Luti (1666-1724)", The Royal Collection Trust]
Career
In Rome he gained the patronage of Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany,[ "Study of a Boy in a Blue Jacket", Metropolitan Museum of Art] an enthusiast of Luti's pastel . Luti was one of the first artists to work in pastels as the final composition as opposed to initial studies for paintings or frescoes.
Luti was employed by many of the leading Roman families of the day, including the Colonna family, Pallavicini, Barberini, and Odescalchi. He also worked in oil painting and painted frescoes, including for the Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano. He became a member of the Accademia di San Luca in 1694.
Luti was also a successful art dealer and ran a school of drawing; among his pupils were Giovanni Domenico Piastrini, Giovanni Paolo Panini, Claude Arnulphy, Jean-Baptiste van Loo, William Kent,[ Serie degli uomini i piu illustri nella pittura, scultura, e architettura, Volume 25, (1775) page 136.] and Vieira Lusitano.
Knighthood
In 1720, he was knighted in the Academy of St Luke of Rome and elected Principe. The appointment was not without controversy, since some:[ Memorie per servire alla storia della romana Accademia di San Luca by Melchiorre Missirini, page 203]
"could not find anything (of Luti's) worthy of memory for the benefit of the arts. Pascoli's of account Luti, found him a deep intellect, and even more knowledgeable of the works that he draws, although ... because he knew too much and was never satisfied, he oftentimes recycled thoughts and figures: he did not make friends with anyone, and for this reason, when was elected Prince of the Academy, there was not much applause."
The next year he dedicated himself to painting frescoes the cupola of the Church of Santi Luca e Martina in Rome.
Gallery
File:Pius V and the Ambassador of the King of Poland - Benedetto Luti.jpg| Pius V and the Ambassador of the King of Poland at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1712
File:Christ and the Woman of Samaria - Benedetto Luti.jpg| Christ and the Woman of Samaria at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1715–20
File:Benedetto Luti - Head of a Young Girl - WGA13782.jpg| Young Girl (1717), pastel on paper
File:Benedetto Luti - Head of a Young Boy - WGA13781.jpg| Young Boy (1717), pastel on paper
File:Boy with the flute Benedetto Luti (1720).jpg| Boy with the flute (c. 1720), oil on canvas
File:Luti Apollo and Daphne.jpg| Apollo and Daphne, oil on canvas
File:Allegoria della Sapienza.jpg| Allegory of Wisdom
File:Rebecca at the well Benedetto Luti.jpg| Rebecca at Well
File:Ajaccio Luti Ste Catherine.JPG| St Catherine, oil on canvas
File:Seated Nude Male Figure (recto); Seated Figure (verso) - Benedetto Luti.jpg| Seated Nude Male Figure (recto); Seated Figure (verso) at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Sources
-
R. Maffeis, Benedetto Luti: l'ultimo maestro, Firenze, Mandragora, 2012.
-
S. Sperindei, Nuovi spunti di ricerca su Benedetto Luti, in "Annali della Pontificia Insigne Accademia di Belle Arti e Lettere dei Virtuosi al Pantheon", 14 (2014), pp. 601–612.
-
G. Sestieri, Risarcimenti a Benedetto Luti, in Studi di storia dell’arte in onore di Fabrizio Lemme, a cura di F. Baldassari, A. Agresti, Roma 2017, pp. 265–276.
