Jeanne Hébuterne, Modigliani's great lovePerhaps the most well-known artist of Livornese origins is Amedeo Modigliani. He was born in Livorno in 1884 and gained his early artistic training within the Macchiaioli group.

Modigliani spent most of his short life in Paris, where he died in 1920, having said “I am going to drink myself dead”, which unfortunately he did.

Modigliani was both an artist and a sculptor and was influenced by Cézanne, Picasso, and by African sculpture, but essentially by his Italian heritage.  He was probably the greatest Italian artist of the 20th century.

His work only began to be noticed by the critics after he died, in particular following an exhibition of his paintings at the Venice Biennale in 1930.

Nowadays his paintings can be seen in various parts of the world, from Italy to Switzerland, France, Britain, and the USA but sadly not in Livorno itself. The nearest gallery exhibiting his work is the Museo Civico di Arte Contemporaneo in Milan.

The house where he was born is in Via Roma, close to Piazza Attias, in the town centre. A plaque on the wall commemorates the event.

Antonio Dinelli: Young Livornese artistAntonio Dinelli is a young artist born in Livorno in 1982. At 14 he enrolled at the Franco Russoli Art Institute in Pisa, focussing his talents on painting. At 19 he went to the prestigious Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence and studied painting for four years, experimenting with various techniques and specialising finally in oil painting. He graduated in 2005 with top marks.

Photography by Diego PiccalugaDiego Piccaluga was born in Genoa on Christmas Eve 1955 under the sign of Capricorn. Until recently he lived in Livorno but just over a year ago moved to the village of Parlascio in the municipality of Casciana Terme, Province of Pisa.

Diego has been working in the arts for about 20 years, passing from the recycling of objects to contemporary painting using x-ray sheets. He is currently working with digital photography.

CasolareElena Cappelletti was born in Livorno where, while still at school, she studied the piano for ten years. During the same period, she also began to draw and experiment with different techniques such as tempera, watercolour and ink.

However, it was not until she tried painting with oil paints that her love for painting in particular began.

Her taste for colour and image also developed through the computer, for which she has a particular passion. She attended a number of graphic design courses, thus improving her skill and interest in this area.

Livornese and Macchiaiolo
Self-Portrait of Giovanni FattoriBorn in Livorno on 6th September 1825, Giovanni  Fattori is the city’s most famous artist, and it is not by chance that Livorno’s only public art gallery is named after him.

Fattori is best known for having been one of the main artists in the Macchiaioli movement, a group which produced surprisingly fresh and vivid paintings, considered forerunner of the Impressionists. Fattori attained brilliant effects of light and colour by the use of strong colour patches. 

He began his artistic training under local artist Giuseppe Baldini, but moved to Florence in 1846 and continued his studies under artist Giuseppe Bezzuoli. However, not much remains of his early works, apart from sketches he made in the pocket notebooks he always kept with him and on which he based some of his later works.

RosesAlthough Mario Madiai was born in Siena in 1944, he moved to Livorno at a young age. His early  talent was quickly recognized by critics, collectors and experts alike. Since the early 1970s, Madiai has enjoyed wide success, and his works have been shown in galleries throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States. Madiai is among the most recognized and critically acclaimed names of contemporary Italian art, and is considered the last legitimate heir of the elegant and semiabstract “Macchiaioli” art movement indigenous to the city of Livorno.

Stefano Urzi was born in Livorno, Italy in 1963. He achieved his first Diploma of Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts of  Florence, and a second one at the Free Academy of Fine Arts of Livorno.
His first personal exhibition took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1991 and many others followed due to the positive acclaim that his realistic art received.
He has had exhibitions in Florence, Pisa, Livorno, and Pistoia and in 2002 won the first prize at the Premio Rotonda exhibition in his home town Livorno.