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Gessi, Francesco
(b Bologna, 1588; d Bologna, 1649). Italian painter. He was first a pupil of Giovan Battista Cremonini and then of Denys Calvaert; c. 1615 he entered the workshop of Guido Reni. The progressive influence of Reni on his work can be seen in the development from paintings such as St Charles Adoring the Holy Nail (1612; Bologna, S Maria dei Poveri) and the frescoed Death of St Roch (1614; Bologna, oratory of S Rocco), to the small altarpiece of the parish church of Pianorso (Modena) and the Virgin of the Rosary at Castelnuovo ne’ Monti (Reggio Emilia). The first two works are characterized by an archaizing naturalism, while in the second two the elegance of Reni is touched with fantasy, resulting in a style similar to that of Gessi’s contemporary, Mastelletta. This individual element in his style was suppressed for those important commissions where he was working under Reni’s direct supervision, as in the frescoes (1615–20), commissioned by Cardinal Pietro, for the chapel of Aldobrandini the Holy Sacrament in Ravenna Cathedral or the Redeemer Raising His Hand in Blessing (1620) for the main altar of the church of S Salvatore in Bologna; for these works he was able to imitate his master’s style perfectly.
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- Gessi, Francesco
- attributions
- collaboration
- patrons and collectors
- pupils
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