Page 115 - La Société canadienne d'histoire de l'Église catholique - Rapport 1961

REPORT ON TIIE PICTURE GALLERY. 111

JOSEPH, early as the age of four or five years, used to spend
as
hours in gazing at them. He was educated at the Royal Acad-
emy of his native city, and his instructor was OLIVA, one of the
most distinguished of Italian teachers. At twelve Sears of age,
a likeness he had iaken in black crayons fell undcr the notice of
the Queen Dowager of Naples; and, from that time until the day
of her death in 1847, he had a generous and most kind patron-
ess, who took, in the young artist, a mother's interest. At the
age of thirteen he painted her portrait so well, that he received
for encouragement a pension from the king for five years. He
was employed, soon after, to paint the portrait of the Arch-
duchess AUGUSTA, daughter of the Gra,nd Duke of Tuscany.
At the age of eighteen, he went to Rome, Vienna, Florence,
and Milan, and had immediate and constant occupation at each
and all of those cities. In 1840, he was commissioned by the
royal family to go to Vienna, to paint the portrait of the Arch-
duke CIIARLES, for his daughter the Queen of Naples; and
other orders kept him there for more than a year. He was sent
to Paris, in 1842, in the employment of Queen CHRISTINE of
Spain, daughter of the queen of Naples, until her recall to
Spain in 1844, from which she had been exiled; and during his
sojourn in Paris, he made three portraits of her from life, and
was employed by her on pictures of her friends. The Prince
of Capua, the famous Arab chief EL ABOUDI, and the Duke d'
AUMALE were among his sitters at this time, and the lattergave
a
Mr. FAGNANI valuable diamond ring as a token of his satis-
faction with the picture.
FAQNANI followed his royal patroness, Queen CHRISTINE, to
Spain, and remained there two years, constantly employed by
the royal family and others. He was dispatched by Queen
(~~RISTIXE to Naples to take her mother's portrait, which he suc-
cessfully accomplished. At Madrid, he painted Queen ISA-
BELLA, and her sister the Duchess of Montpensier; also the
Duchess of Alba, sister of the present Empress of the French,
and many others of the most distinguished nobles of that Court.
Such was his success, that he was made a Chevalier of the Order