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Sculptor, 1757 to 1822

Antonio Canova

When the French carried off the Medici Venus from the Uffizi in 1802, Florence asked Canova for a copy. He refused to copy and made a Venus of his own.

Born
1757, Possagno, Italy
Died
1822, Venice, Italy
Movement
Neoclassicism
In Florence
2 works in 2 museums

Where to see Antonio Canova in Florence

Each work with the museum it hangs in. Museums move and lend their works, so check before a special journey.

Pitti Palace, Palatine Gallery1 work

  1. Canova's Venus Italica in the Pitti Palace: the goddess in white marble clutching a cloth to her breast, in a red and gold room.

    Venus Italica

    1804 to 1812

    The goddess surprised as she comes from her bath, clutching a cloth to her breast. The ancient Venus came back from Paris in 1815, and Florence kept both.

Basilica of Santa Croce1 work

  1. Monument to Vittorio Alfieri

    1806 to 1810

    Italy herself, crowned with towers, weeps over the poet's tomb. It was paid for by the Countess of Albany, who had lived with him.

The life of Antonio Canova

Canova was born at Possagno, in the hills north of Venice, in 1757, into a family of stonecutters. He settled in Rome in 1781 and made his name with the tombs of two popes.

His marbles are smooth, cool and exact, modelled on the antique statues he saw around him. When Napoleon's armies carried those statues off to Paris, the pope bought Canova's Perseus to fill an empty pedestal in the Vatican, and in 1815 sent Canova himself to bring them back. He died in Venice in 1822.

What to know

  • Carved the Venus Italica between 1804 and 1812
  • His monument to Vittorio Alfieri in Santa Croce was finished in 1810
Born
1 November 1757, Possagno, Italy
Died
13 October 1822, Venice, Italy

Antonio Canova: common questions

Where can you see Antonio Canova in Florence?
At the Pitti Palace, Palatine Gallery: Venus Italica. At the Basilica of Santa Croce: Monument to Vittorio Alfieri. Museums move and lend their works, so check before a special journey.
What is Antonio Canova's most famous work in Florence?
Venus Italica, of 1804 to 1812, at the Pitti Palace, Palatine Gallery. The goddess surprised as she comes from her bath, clutching a cloth to her breast. The ancient Venus came back from Paris in 1815, and Florence kept both.
When and where was Antonio Canova born?
On 1 November 1757, at Possagno, Italy. Antonio Canova died on 13 October 1822, at Venice, Italy, aged about 65.
What is Antonio Canova known for?
Carved the Venus Italica between 1804 and 1812. His monument to Vittorio Alfieri in Santa Croce was finished in 1810. Antonio Canova was an Italian sculptor, of Neoclassicism.

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