Antonio Fontanesi
Encyclopedia
Antonio Fontanesi was an Italian
painter who lived in Meiji period
Japan
between 1876 and 1878. He introduced European oil painting
techniques to Japan, and exerted a significant role in the development of modern Japanese yōga
(Western style) painting. He is known for his works in the romantic style of the French Barbizon school
.
, Emilia-Romagna
, and trained with the landscape painters Prospero Minghetti and Vincenzo Carnevali. From 1841 to 1846 he made theatre
sets and began painting landscapes. In 1850, he moved to Geneva
, where he stayed until 1865. His main area of interest was landscape painting, which he expanded on after visiting the 1855 Exposition Universelle
in Paris
. He participated in important artistic exhibitions, displaying his works in Lyon
, Turin
, Milan
, Florence
, Genoa
and the Triennial Exhibition of Fine Art in Bologna
. He was nominated professor at the Academy of Lucca
, but moved to Turin when a chair as a landscape professor was created specially for him at the Accademia Albertina in Turin from 1869 to 1876.
), an art school of painting and sculpture was founded in Tokyo
under the supervision of the Ministry of Industry. It was the first governmental art school founded in Japan.
Upon recommendation of the Italian minister to Tokyo, Conte Alessandro Fe, the Meiji government contracted three Italian artists as foreign advisors
: Vincenzo Ragusa
(1841–1927) for sculpture, Antonio Fontanesi for drawing and Giovanni Cappelletti (died 1885) for the preparatory course. The trio greatly influenced the development of Japanese art
and architecture
through the next several decades. The acceptance of teachers in art from Italy alone was based on the unofficial government policy of accepting military advice from France
, industrial advice from Great Britain
, agricultural advice from the United States
, and legal and medical advice from Germany
.
Fontanesi introduced the techniques of charcoal
, crayon
and oil paints to his Japanese students, who included Asai Chū
and Yamamoto Hosui. He also taught western concepts of perspective
, anatomy
and sketching
from life. His career in Japan was cut short by serious illness, which forced him to return to Italy in 1878.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
painter who lived in Meiji period
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
between 1876 and 1878. He introduced European oil painting
Oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...
techniques to Japan, and exerted a significant role in the development of modern Japanese yōga
Yoga (art)
or literally "Western-style paintings" is a term used to describe paintings by Japanese artists that have been made in accordance with Western traditional conventions, techniques and materials...
(Western style) painting. He is known for his works in the romantic style of the French Barbizon school
Barbizon school
The Barbizon school of painters were part of a movement towards realism in art, which arose in the context of the dominant Romantic Movement of the time. The Barbizon school was active roughly from 1830 through 1870...
.
Early life
Fontanesi was born in Reggio EmiliaReggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
, Emilia-Romagna
Emilia-Romagna
Emilia–Romagna is an administrative region of Northern Italy comprising the two historic regions of Emilia and Romagna. The capital is Bologna; it has an area of and about 4.4 million inhabitants....
, and trained with the landscape painters Prospero Minghetti and Vincenzo Carnevali. From 1841 to 1846 he made theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
sets and began painting landscapes. In 1850, he moved to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, where he stayed until 1865. His main area of interest was landscape painting, which he expanded on after visiting the 1855 Exposition Universelle
Exposition Universelle (1855)
The Exposition Universelle of 1855 was an International Exhibition held on the Champs-Elysées in Paris from May 15 to November 15, 1855. Its full official title was the Exposition Universelle des produits de l'Agriculture, de l'Industrie et des Beaux-Arts de Paris 1855.The exposition was a major...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. He participated in important artistic exhibitions, displaying his works in Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
and the Triennial Exhibition of Fine Art in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
. He was nominated professor at the Academy of Lucca
Lucca
Lucca is a city and comune in Tuscany, central Italy, situated on the river Serchio in a fertile plainnear the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Lucca...
, but moved to Turin when a chair as a landscape professor was created specially for him at the Accademia Albertina in Turin from 1869 to 1876.
Career in Japan
In 1876, the Technical Fine Arts School (Kobu Bijutsu Gakko), (later part of the University of Technology, and later the Tokyo Institute of TechnologyTokyo Institute of Technology
The Tokyo Institute of Technology is a public research university located in Greater Tokyo Area, Japan. Tokyo Tech is the largest institution for higher education in Japan dedicated to science and technology. Tokyo Tech enrolled 4,850 undergaraduates and 5006 graduate students for 2009-2010...
), an art school of painting and sculpture was founded in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
under the supervision of the Ministry of Industry. It was the first governmental art school founded in Japan.
Upon recommendation of the Italian minister to Tokyo, Conte Alessandro Fe, the Meiji government contracted three Italian artists as foreign advisors
O-yatoi gaikokujin
The Foreign government advisors in Meiji Japan, known in Japanese as oyatoi gaikokujin , were those foreign advisors hired by the Japanese government for their specialized knowledge to assist in the modernization of Japan at the end of the Bakufu and during the Meiji era. The term is sometimes...
: Vincenzo Ragusa
Vincenzo Ragusa
Vincenzo Ragusa was an Italian sculptor who lived in Meiji period Japan from 1876-1882. He introduced European techniques in bronze casting, and new methods of modeling in wood, clay, plaster and wire armatures which exerted a significant role in the development of the modern Japanese sculptural...
(1841–1927) for sculpture, Antonio Fontanesi for drawing and Giovanni Cappelletti (died 1885) for the preparatory course. The trio greatly influenced the development of Japanese art
Japanese art
Japanese art covers a wide range of art styles and media, including ancient pottery, sculpture in wood and bronze, ink painting on silk and paper and more recently manga, cartoon, along with a myriad of other types of works of art...
and architecture
Japanese architecture
' originated in prehistoric times with simple pit-houses and stores that were adapted to a hunter-gatherer population. Influence from Han Dynasty China via Korea saw the introduction of more complex grain stores and ceremonial burial chambers....
through the next several decades. The acceptance of teachers in art from Italy alone was based on the unofficial government policy of accepting military advice from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, industrial advice from Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, agricultural advice from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and legal and medical advice from Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Fontanesi introduced the techniques of charcoal
Charcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
, crayon
Crayon
A crayon is a stick of colored wax, charcoal, chalk, or other materials used for writing, coloring, drawing, and other methods of illustration. A crayon made of oiled chalk is called an oil pastel; when made of pigment with a dry binder, it is simply a pastel; both are popular media for color...
and oil paints to his Japanese students, who included Asai Chū
Asai Chū
was a Japanese painter, noted for his pioneering work in developing the yōga art movement in late 19th century and early twentieth-century Japanese painting.-Biography:...
and Yamamoto Hosui. He also taught western concepts of perspective
Perspective (graphical)
Perspective in the graphic arts, such as drawing, is an approximate representation, on a flat surface , of an image as it is seen by the eye...
, anatomy
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
and sketching
Sketch (drawing)
A sketch is a rapidly executed freehand drawing that is not usually intended as a finished work...
from life. His career in Japan was cut short by serious illness, which forced him to return to Italy in 1878.
See also
- Oyatoi gaikokujin
- Edoardo ChiossoneEdoardo ChiossoneEdoardo Chiossone was an Italian engraver and painter, noted for his work as a foreign advisor to Meiji period Japan, and for his collection of Japanese art.-Biography:...
- Vincenzo RagusaVincenzo RagusaVincenzo Ragusa was an Italian sculptor who lived in Meiji period Japan from 1876-1882. He introduced European techniques in bronze casting, and new methods of modeling in wood, clay, plaster and wire armatures which exerted a significant role in the development of the modern Japanese sculptural...