Giuseppe Arcimboldo valuation
Italian court painter to the Habsburgs, famous for heads composed of fruit, flowers and animals.
Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1527–1593) was born in Milan and began by designing stained glass for its cathedral.
What a work by Giuseppe Arcimboldo is worth
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Bio
Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1527–1593) was born in Milan and began by designing stained glass for its cathedral. In 1562 he became a court painter to the Habsburgs in Vienna and then Prague, serving three emperors. He is known for his composite heads, made up of fruit, vegetables, flowers, fish and books, among them The Four Seasons of 1563, The Four Elements, and Vertumnus, a portrait of Rudolf II as the Roman god of the seasons, which is at Skokloster Castle in Sweden. The Surrealists took a renewed interest in him in the twentieth century.
Paintings securely by him are very few. His inventions were much copied, and composite heads by followers and later imitators are what generally appears on the market. A buyer will want to know the date of the panel or canvas and will look for specialist study. Condition should be checked for retouching and abrasion, particularly in the small painted details.
At a glance
- Born
- 1527, Milan
- Died
- 11 July 1593, Milan
- Movement
- Mannerism
Whitebank Fine Art is an art advisory and gallery, not an auction house, and is not affiliated with any auction house or with the artist, their estate or their representatives. This page describes the range we advise on. Nothing here is investment advice.
