Asciano dedicates an exhibition to Amos Cassioli and the purist painters of nineteenth-century Siena

The Cassioli Museum in Asciano (province of Siena) is dedicating an exhibition to Amos Cassioli (Asciano, 1832 - Florence, 1891), one of the most important exponents of 19th-century historical painting in Italy, who was born right in the village in the heart of the Crete Senesi: the review, entitled Amos Cassioli and his Purist Friends. 19th-century Sienese Works from a Private Collection, is scheduled from March 24 to July 29, and will then move to Saturnia, in the province of Grosseto, from August 5 to November 5 (at the Polo Culturale Pietro Aldi). Amos Cassioli’s works are exhibited together with works by other purist painters of the19th century in Siena, such as Luigi Mussini, Cesare Maccari, Alessandro Franchi, Pietro Aldi, Riccardo Meacci, and Giuseppe Cassioli: these are works from a private collection consisting of about 40 works including paintings, drawings, watercolors, and a rare lithographic stone print matrix of Amos Cassioli’s well-known painting representing the Madonna of Thought.

The aim of the exhibition, curated by Donatella Capresi and Francesca Petrucci, is also to deepen the knowledge of the painter from Asciano, to whom the museum hosting the show is also dedicated: some of the works on display are presented to the public for the first time.

Amos Cassioli (1832-1891), after studying at the Academy of Fine Arts in Siena, Cassioli between 1856 and 1859 had the opportunity to stay in Rome thanks to a scholarship awarded to him by the Grand Duke of Tuscany. In the late 1860s he moved to Florence, which became his permanent home although he continued to maintain continuous relations with Siena. He was an excellent portrait painter (at the 1861 Italian Exposition in Florence Pietro Estense Selvatico called him “the first among Tuscan portrait painters”) and also distinguished himself for large works with historical subjects including “The Battle of Legnano” (Florence, Galleria di Arte Moderna di Palazzo Pitti), “Provenzan Salvani” (Siena, Palazzo Pubblico), and “The Oath of Pontida” (Siena, Palazzo Pubblico). Between 1884 and 1886, he executed the frescoes in the Risorgimento Room of Siena’s Palazzo Pubblico depicting “The Battle of San Martino” and “The Battle of Palestro.” His works are preserved in Siena (Pie Disposizioni, Banca Monte dei Paschi, Palazzo Pubblico) Florence, Milan, in many public museums and private collections.

“2018,” says Mayor Paolo Bonari, “will be the year of Cassioli for Asciano. In the spring we will celebrate Amos with this beautiful exhibition that will remain open until the summer, while in the fall it will be the turn of his son Giuseppe, author, among other things, of the Olympic medal used for all editions of the Olympics from 1924 to 2000. Two important events made possible by the extraordinary understanding that has arisen in recent years between the municipality and cultural associations in the area.”

Pictured: Amos Cassioli, The Letter, detail (oil on canvas, 31 x 27 cm; Siena, Bianchi Collection)

Asciano dedicates an exhibition to Amos Cassioli and the purist painters of nineteenth-century Siena

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