The enigmatic legacy of Pompeo Batoni

Though he was trained to become a goldsmith, Pompeo Batoni’s heart and talent lay elsewhere. And despite his immense talents in painting, Batoni contributions to neoclassical painting are often overlooked and forgotten. His role of bringing back to life classical antiquity in mainstream art is often ignored. That is the result of several factors, but predominantly it is due to how little is actually known about Pompeo Batoni. Questions concerning who trained him and how he developed his skill remain unanswered. Indeed, when he moved to Rome at age 19 in 1727, the first documented case of Batoni’s works appear when he needed to support himself by drawing antique objects and British tourists in the city. Essentially, Pompeo Batoni was a glorified street portraitist. But, the story of Pompeo Batoni and his art only develops from there.

Pompeo Batoni’s  work as a street portraitist recording European travelers made him become among the most celebrated painters in Rome just like his rival Anton Raphael Mengs, another portraitist and pioneer of early neoclassicism. His portraits were in such demand that individuals from all positions sought his service, from Pope Clement XIII to American statesman Philip Livingston. While his portraits earned him initial success, it was his gift as a historical painter that made him among the most sought after painters in Europe. In particular, Pompeo was a proponent of classical antiquity in his paintings, as well as having an allegorical bend. His religious and mythological paintings allowed him to be categorized as being of the late Baroque style of art that enjoyed popularity in the 17th century onwards. This style of art was institutionally encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church which promoted that paintings should express themes that have to do with the world of the Holy text and appeal to the pathos of audiences. The Sacred Heart of Jesus of Pompeo Batoni painted for Roman Catholic Church is one of the greatest religious images of the eighteenth century.

An example of how he employed religious iconography is seen in his painting, The Madonna and Child with St Francis and Saint John the Baptist. The idealized beauty of the characters in the painting reflects a pattern in the works of Batoni. His paintings never allowed room for imperfection. In The Madonna and The Child, his use of gestures with the Madonna gently staring at the child while holding the infant close to herself conveys a feeling of closeness and the perfection of the one frozen moment. The image is still, yet the attention to detail makes it so animated. Furthermore, Batoni’s audience for his paintings, such as The Ecstasy of St Catherine of Siena or Holy Family with St.s Elizabeth and Saint John The Baptist , is apparent in his assumption that the characters and stories are previously understood by those who view it.

However, his main source of income throughout his life became portraits. In this genre, Pompeo Batoni borrowed elements from other forms of painting such as Rococo and tend towards neoclassicism. Stylistically, this made him more than a baroque artist. His use of colors and attention to physical features was unlike other baroque paintings and altarpieces. In many of his portraits and paintings, for example, Batoni adds antique elements to provide a setting and timelessness to his portraits. His focus on physical details in body language and his use of classical antiquity, abandoning the Baroque style, allowed Batoni to foreshadow what was to become the popular trend of art later with neoclassicism and made him admitted as one of the originators of neoclassical painting among Mengs and Angelica Kauffmann.

The critique of Pompeo Batoni is that he was very good at what he did. A simple viewing of his paintings will attest to this. However, being a portraitist artist limits the extent of your legacy as an artist: portraits are frozen in time and, in his circumstance, a result of egotism and elitism of his subjects.  His altarpieces are solid, but were so common at the time that there were many more memorable painters. Batoni’s story is unique, but, like his works, viewed as being forgettable.

In 2008, a great exhibition was organized for 300th anniversary of birth of Pompei Batoni in London which presents the influence of this artist during the transition period from late baroque style to early neoclassical painting. All his Baroque paintings, classical, religious and mythological paintings were displayed as well as his amazing portraits of the Grand Tour and many works not publicly seen before. Around 60 paintings including his great works such as Diana and Cupid, the portrait of Sir Humphrey Morice, Ecstasy of St Catherine of Siena and Holy Family were gathered from several museums and private collections for this exhibition. Pompei Batoni exhibition in National Gallery helped for re-discovery of such an exceptional artist and recovery of his reputation 300 years after his birth.

Tags: neoclassicism religious painting, the sacred family by batoni, painting during neo classical period, neoclassical madonna, neoclassicism arts, famous neoclassical artwork, baroque artist, art of the neo classical era, national gallery paints