Andrea Procaccini (Rome, Italy, 1671 – San Ildefonso, Spain, 1734)

Born in Rome in 1671 into a well-off family, though marked by financial difficulties that led him to pursue an artistic career, Andrea Procaccini trained in the workshop of Carlo Maratti, one of the leading exponents of Roman classicism, becoming one of his most trusted collaborators.

During his Roman years, Procaccini produced copies of Maratti’s models and original paintings inspired by the Bolognese school and the masters of the seventeenth century. Among his early works are a Cleopatra (c. 1690) and the portrait of Francesca Gommi, Maratti’s wife. In 1702, he collaborated on the restoration of the frescoes in the Vatican Rooms under Maratti’s direction, an experience that brought him closer to the models of Raphael and Domenichino.

In 1720, he moved to Spain, where he worked at the court of Philip V as a chamber painter and architect. There, he contributed to the foundation of the papal tapestry factory and created works for the Royal Palace of La Granja.
After his Spanish experience, his painting—elegant and measured—reached full maturity, blending Roman classicism with the decorative style of the Bourbon court.

He died in 1734 in San Ildefonso, Spain.

Photo UniCredit Art Collection (Sebastiano Pellion di Persano)