Giuseppe Bonati

Who was Giuseppe Bonati?

Giuseppe Bonati was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active in Rome and Ferrara.

He is also known as Giovannino del Pio or Giovanni Bonatti. He initially trained as a pupil of Francesco Costanzo Cattaneo and Leonello Bononi. Under the patronage of cardinal Carlo Pio, in 1658 he was sent to Bologna to train with Guercino. In 1662, he travels to Rome to work in the studio of Pier Francesco Mola. Bonati attempts to establish a studio to rival Carlo Maratta. Along with his patrons, he traveled through Italy, including Venice, returning in 1665 to Rome where he worked in many churches, including Santa Croce in Gerusalemme and Santa Maria in Vallicella. In the Museo Capitolino are paintings of Rinaldo and Armida as well as Sisera and Jael. He painted for Queen Christina of Sweden.