Stefano
Torelli

historical and portrait painter, a native of Bologna, a pupil of his father, Felice T. (1667-1748) and the French. Solimena, worked first in Naples and then in Rome, where, in 1740, invited him to his service the king of Poland and elector of Saxony August III. Having moved to the court of the Emperor in Dresden, So was there Scripture portraits, altar icons, wall and ceiling murals in the residences of the elector and in the aristocratic houses, as well as drawings by the then edition collection of prints of paintings by the Dresden gallery. In 1762 he was summoned to the Russian court, and from that time until the end of his life he worked in St. Petersburg. his paintings decorating the ceiling and walls of the Empire. palaces and portraying ladies of the Royal family, etc. of the works executed in Russia, the famous portraits of Elizabeth, Peter the Great, Catherine II (1762), it is in the form of Minerva lavished awards for academic and artistic merit (náchod. at the Museum Imp. Academy hood.), gr. A. A. Chernyshev (grav. Joker), O. M. Deribas, knag. N. G. Beloselskaya count. Sievers, a sketch of planned painting "the Coronation of Catherine II" (in the Museum Imp. Acad. hood.) and the frescoes in the Palace of Oranienbaum. T. was a gifted artist, developed mainly on the study of the works of the Carracci school; he cleverly owned by brush, was distinguished by freshness and naturalness of the colors and even the pattern was less campy than most of his contemporaries. Talent also drew the cartoons.

Born into a family of artist. Initially he studied painting from his father, F. Torelli, then known at the time of the portrait and decorative master Solimena Francesco (1657-1747) — the famous Neapolitan painter and architect. He studied Pietro Rotari. Then Torelli worked in Venice, where it finally formed a creative manner.

In 1740 Torelli was invited by the elector of Saxony and king of Poland Augustus III in Dresden. The paintings of Dresden's palaces, the artist, died during the Second world war. Later Torelli performed altarpieces, ceiling, portraits in Rostock, Frauenburg, Bayreuth. In 1759-1761, the artist worked in lübeck, where he completed murals for the hall of audiences at the town hall. Here he painted the portrait of Lieutenant-General Franz von Chase, the Governor of the city, who soon married the daughter of the artist.

In 1762 Torelli was invited to Russia by Ivan Shuvalov as the Professor of the Academy of arts. However, in 1768 he was dismissed from the Academy by count V. G. Orlov and was appointed court painter to Catherine II. Since its emergence in Russia Torelli participated in the large paintings, executed portraits, created allegorical compositions. In January-February 1763 in connection with the coronation celebrations, he was in Moscow, where he was summoned Igor Shuvalov, strapped in a good portrait.

In St. Petersburg the initial period of Torelli's works intensively and on a large scale, that is, does "all": portraits, lampshades, mural paintings. However, he works quickly and with high professionalism. This provided him success and a large number of orders from the court nobility.

In 1768, in accession to the post of court artist Torelli received an order for the painting "the Coronation of Catherine II on 22 September 1762," which was finished in 1777-m (TG). In 1763, the artist performed a ceremonial portrait of Catherine II (RM), the sketch for which is in the Saratov art Museum and portrait of count G. G. Orlov (1763, RM), A. A. Chernysheva (GE), etc. Later, the wizard created the "Coronation portrait of Catherine II" (Between 1763 and 1766. RM).

Art of portrait of S. Torelli addressed throughout life, carrying out orders of different persons. As a portraitist, the artist adhered to the tradition of "academic Baroque". His works are not devoid of drama in setting the model and, as a rule, made in panegyric spirit. A significant part of the works executed S. Torelli in Russia, was an allegorical composition: "Catherine II as Minerva, patron of the arts" (1770. RM) , "allegory on the victory of Catherine II against the Turks and Tatars" (1772. TG) , "Diana and Endymion" (the Chinese Palace in Oranienbaum), etc.

Allegory Torelli, like his portraits, is also filled with the spirit of panegyric, distinguished by the virtuosity of the writing, the skilful staging. The amazing finesse and elegance typical of the monumental decorative works of the artist. His ceiling in the Winter Palace (1764) aroused the admiration of his contemporaries. "It is impossible to imagine anything more enjoyable and powerful of plafond paintings", wrote about them J. Staehelin. The real masterpiece was the work of an artist for the Chinese Palace in Oranienbaum, made in the years 1765-1770. Written by Torelli's plafond for the Hall of the muses recognize the best work of monumental-decorative art Rococo art in Russia. (Russian painting. Encyclopedia)

Torelli lived in Russia c 1762 to the end of life and was buried in St. Petersburg in 1780.