Adeodato Malatesta

Adeodato Malatesta (May 6, 1806 – December 24, 1891) was an Italian painter, trained in a grand Neoclassical style, depicting mostly of sacred and historic subjects.

He was born in Modena. His father was a captain in the Granducal army of Modena. As his name A deo dato or given to god implies, Adeodato's father had planned a career for the boy in religious orders, but his uncle seeing his disposition to arts, encouraged the young man to enroll in the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Modena (Accademia Atestina), where the Academy's director, professor Giuseppe Pisani, seeing the young man's skill, obtained for him a stipend to study in Florence under the Neoclassical artists Benvenuti, Bezzuoli, and Bartolini. At Florence, but for church of San Francesco di Modena, he painted St Francis receives the stigmata. He also painted a Santa Filomena for her votive church of Modena.

Moving to Rome, he painted Miracle of St Francis for a church in Massa Carrara; and the Vestizione di Alfonso d' Este, which was sent to Vienna. His stay in Rome was cut short when his stipend was suspended on the suspicion he held liberal leanings. Malatesta left Rome, and worked at the Palazzo Papadopoli on the grand canal in Venice, where he painted a St Mark.

In 1833, Malatesta returned to Modena to work at the Academy. In 1839, he was nominated vice-director and professor at the Accademia of Modena; and later director to replace Pisani. He continued to be active, painting the sipario (theater curtain) of the Teatro Comunale. For the contessa Boschetti di Modena he painted two large canvases depicting Abraham banishes Hagar, and the Tobiolo. He painted an oil canvas l'Invalido della grande armata; a Jeremiah cries over the ruins of Jerusalem; a Crucifixion; a Flight to Egypt; and Marriage of the Virgin. These last three canvases are large and populated with many figures. He painted the San Bartolomeo found in Fiumalbo; a portrait of contessa Spalletti, dressed as an Amazon; a St Paul for Concordia in the province of Modena; a Madonna con diversi santi found in the church of the Dominicans in Modena; He completed portraits of Dukes Francesco IV and Francesco V of Modena and the latter's daughter. He also painted a portrait of the Dukes of Chambord, and the first son of the Duke of Parma.

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