Painting: Gordigiani Edoardo (Florence 1866-1961) - Painter

Gordigiani Edoardo (Florence 1866-1961) - Painter and landscape

Oil painting on canvas depicting painter and landscape Signed lower right Dimensions: canvas 76x55cm, frame 90x70cm Edoardo Gordigiani was born in Florence on 18 January 1866 to the painter Michele, son of the famous composer of music Luigi Gordigiani. He spent the first few years between Florence and the surrounding countryside: Bellosguardo, Montughi and Striano in Mugello. After completing his studies at Domengé he entered the Military College of Florence in 1880, from which he left a year later to attend the Academy of Fine Arts. Here, under the guidance of Rivalta and Ciaranfi, he finished his artistic training, always following the lesson of Giovanni Fattori. In 1885 Gordigiani painted a head of a natural peasant and for the first time his father Michele, always hostile to his artistic inclination, had to recognize his great abilities. In the same year the Florentine painter became friends with Egisto Fabbri and Alfredo Müller. With the latter he went to France thus having the opportunity to appreciate the French Impressionists, especially Cézanne. The first exhibition in which he took part was in 1880 on the occasion of the Florentine Promoter where he exhibited the Snowing painting, not well received by the critics. In 1893 he went to New York where he met Eleonora Duse and gave her a portrait. He presented the latter in 1895 at the Durand Ruel Gallery and was so successful that the following year he presented it at the annual New York Exhibition. Despite the successes achieved overseas, Edward returned to Italy definitively in 1900, settling at Villa Vorsé in Settignano. In this period Gordigiani's painting underwent a profound metamorphosis: it no longer followed the current, of classical inspiration, of his father or of the Macchiaioli of Fattori, nor even the Cézannian one of Müller but became a painting made of personal emotions of impressionist origin. In 1906 he moved to Pisa where he remained until 1915, the year in which he returned to Florence and held a solo exhibition at Palazzo Antinori. He divided the paternal study with the painter Federico Andreotti and his friend Alfredo Müller. The fame came with the Florentine exhibition in 1937 in Via Ricasoli where he finally managed to sell the entire production. Two years later he was awarded the gold medal at the International Exhibition in Paris. He died in 1961 in Popolano di Marradi.