Viani, Lorenzo

PAINTER, ENGRAVER, AUTHOR (ITALY)
BORN 1 Nov 1882, Viareggio, Toscana - DIED 2 Nov 1936, Lido di Ostia, Lazio
GRAVE LOCATION Viareggio, Toscana: Camposanto della Misericordia (Settore 60, Monumento Viani)

Lorenzo Viani was the son of Rinaldo Viani, a servant to the Bourbons. After his father was dismissed, the family knew poverty. In 1893 he was apprenticed to the barber Fortunato Primo Puccini. There he met people like Giacomo Puccini and Gabriele D'Annunzio. He had a talent for drawing and entered the Academy of Fine Arts in Lucca, where he studied from 1900 to 1903.

He settled in Torre del Lago, where he joined the Compagnia della Bohème. He was in frequent contact with Puccini and manages to exhibit drawings at the Venice Biennale. In 1908 he went to Paris where he visited the Van Gogh retrospective. He returned to Italy, but in 1911 he visited Paris again. In 1916 he was enlisted in the army, until his dismissal in 1919. In that year he married Giulia Giorgetti and moved to Montecatini, where Giulia worked as an elementary teacher.

In 1922 he participated in the centenary of the death of P.B. Shelley and he edited the publication that contained contributions by De Ambris and D'Annunzio. In 1925 he published "Paris" that was positively received by the critics. In 1928 he exhibited again at the 16th Biennale of Venice and with great success at the 17th Biennale as well. In 1931 he exhibited at the Quadriennale di Roma and he also exhibited at the Nettuno plant in Viareggio.

In September 1933 he suffered from an asthma attack and he was admitted to the mental hospital of Maggiano, near Lucca. His health problems continued and he died in 1936.

Images

The grave of Lorenzo Viani at the Campo santo della Misicordia, Viareggio.
Picture by Androom (16 Feb 2018)

 

Sources
Lorenzo Viani - Wikipedia


Viardot, Louis

Published: 25 Nov 2018
Last update: 22 Dec 2019