(b Milan, 1609; d Milan, 1662). Son of (1) Panfilo Nuvolone. He first studied with his father and subsequently at the Accademia Ambrosiana in Milan, where he was a pupil of Cerano and came into contact with Daniele Crespi and Giulio Cesare Procaccini. His first signed and dated work, the Miracle of St Martha (1636; Venegono Inferiore, Semin. Arcivescovile), which is much influenced by Morazzone and Giulio Cesare Procaccini, suggests his response to new artistic developments in Milan. The Death of Lucrezia (Milan, Poletti priv. col.), of which there are several versions, is probably slightly later. This work exhibits the soft, atmospheric quality of his art, often explained by his knowledge of Murillo, which, however, is difficult to establish. His contacts with Crespi, Francesco Cairo and above all with Giulio Cesare Procaccini, were of greater significance; from the last-named he learnt how to achieve a delicate modulation of light and shade and to impart sweet facial expressions to his figures. In the 1640s he painted many altarpieces that suggest an awareness of van Dyck, whose work he knew through Valerio Castello (ii) and Giovanni Andrea de’ Ferrari. Outstanding are the Purification of the Virgin (1645; Piacenza, Mus. Civ.), the Assumption of the Virgin (1646; Milan, Brera) and the Virgin in Glory with Saints (1647; Parma, G.N.). In these paintings Nuvolone reveals himself to have been heir to the first generation of innovative painters in 17th-century Lombardy, although he used a less dramatic language, which also reflects an awareness of Emilian art.

Part of the Nuvolone family

• Nuvolone, Carlo Francesco (1609-62)
  • Nuvolone