KAUFMANN Angelica 1741-1807
Angelica Kaufmann was born in Coire, Switzerland on 30 October 1741 and thanks to her painter father, Johann Joseph, became herself a painter of renown all over Europe during her lifetime. It was unusual for a girl to be taught painting in depth, but Angelica showed a precocious talent, which her father encouraged, teaching her himself. When she was about twelve, the bishop of Como summoned her to paint his portrait and she came under the protection of Francis III D'Este, Duke of Modena and Governor of Milan. A further ecclesiastical commission came from Cardinal Roth in Constance and Angelica's talents, not only as a painter, but also as a musician, gained an even wider reputation.
In 1763, she went to Rome to study perspective and during a visit to Venice, met some English noblemen on their Grand Tours. Following these meetings, she decided to take up permanent residence in England and went there in 1766. She was well received both personally and professionally by the artistic circle, chief of whom was Sir Joshua Reynolds. In 1768 she was one of the founder members of the Royal Academy, with her admirer.
After a disastrous marriage to a con-man in 1767, Angelica obtained a separation from the pretended Count Frederick de Horn and continued her professional career. Following her first husband's death, she married Antonio Zucchi, from Venice, in 1781 and they had great success in their paintings of classical idylls and mythical compositions. In 1783 they retired to Italy after having collaborated successfully on many of Robert Adam's commissions. Zucchi's died in 1795, and she twelve years later. She was buried in the church of S. Andreas delle Frate.
Two of her paintings, Portrait of a Lady (circa 1795) and Hector Taking Leave of Andromache (circa 1769), form part of the Tate Gallery collection, London.
Portrait of a Lady circa 1775
Here she gives dignity to a portrait of an unknown lady by showing her as a Roman matron seated in a classical interior.
Hector Taking Leave of Andromache circa 1769
This is a version of a painting exhibited by Kauffman at the first exhibition of the Royal Academy in 1769; it is probably by a follower. It shows a scene from Homer’s epic poem, the Iliad, in which the hero bids farewell to his wife and young son, before leaving for the battlefield.
