Francesco Zuccarelli

Bio

Little is known about the early training of Zuccarelli, one of the more light-hearted landscapists of the Rococo. He probably studied first in Florence and then Rome, where he came into contact with works by Seicento Roman landscapists, such as Andrea Locatelli. He settled in Venice (from 1730) where he was greatly influenced by Marco Ricci. He enjoyed considerable success at Venice, and received important commissions from the well known collector, John Smith, British Concul in the city-state. It was on Smith’s suggestion that Zuccarelli went to London, where he stayed for almost a decade, from 1752-62 and again from 1764/5-71. In 1768 he was a founding member of the Royal Academy in London, and back in Venice he became President of the Accademia in 1771.