Presentation of Volume on Andrea Celesti in Toscolano Maderno
Following soon in Toscolano Maderno will be the presentation of the volume dedicated to “Andrea Celesti, a painter on Lake Garda,” published by T.P. Edizioni of San Felice del Benaco, with the collaboration of the Soprintendenza per i Beni Artistici e Storici di Mantova, Brescia e Cremona.
The texts have been curated by Isabella Marelli, with an introduction by Giuliana Algeri. It is a particularly interesting volume that follows, in a sort of series, the publications previously issued in three separate volumes concerning other famous artists of the past, who left an indelible mark on the painting culture, especially religious, in the areas around Lake Garda and its surroundings.
In 1994, the volume focused on Zenone veronese, published by the Lions Club of Desenzano. In 1997, it was the turn of Giovanni Andrea Bertanza, followed by the current volume on Celesti.
Previous publications and the current volume
The same publishing house, directed by Emanuele Tonoli, an expert art photographer, published, in 1997, and again for the Lions Club Desenzano del Garda e della Riviera, the very interesting volume “Roman Villas on Lake Garda”.
The current volume, “which – as they state in the presentation – represents the group of friends of painter Celesti – the happy conclusion of a not-so-simple project started in 1989 and agreed upon with the Soprintendenza per i Beni Storici delle tre province,” allowed these volumes to be published over the years.
Almost a farewell to initiatives like these, which have been able to catalog and enhance the work of some artists with significant presence in our localities.
The project and the figure of Celesti
“It was a trilogy,” affirms Emanuele Tonoli, “composed of three monographic studies of painters not sufficiently known. Especially the first two, almost ignored by critics, whose works deserve attention, cataloging, and critical in-depth analysis.
The goal is to restore to their creators the nobility they deserve and to stimulate further investigations into artists who are not yet fully understood and studied.”
Contents and history of Andrea Celesti
The volume has gathered most of the artistic production, at least 150 works, scattered across various churches in Brescia, partly in Venetian territory, and also abroad. It concerns Andrea Celesti, a Venetian-born painter (1637) but adopted by Lake Garda, since he moved to Toscolano in 1687.
The painter married Martina Davagni, a Venetian, on January 8, 1688. His first work in the Garda area seems to date from 1688 and appears on one of the canvases located in the presbytery of the Church of Toscolano.
Celesti probably died in Toscolano after 1712, although Giuliana Algeri writes that “more precise indications regarding the place and date of his death are lacking”.