Antonio Canova

Antonio Canova (1757-1822), Italian sculptor, who, with the Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen, was the leading exponent of neoclassicism. Born in Possagno, he studied sculpture in nearby Venice. He won distinction with such marble statues as Daedalus and Icarus (1779, Museo Correr, Venice). On visits to Rome and Naples he was exposed to classical art, and after settling in Rome in 1781, he took an active part in the current revival of interest in antique Greek and Roman styles. For such works as the tombs of Clement XIV (begun 1784, Santi Apostoli, Rome) and Clement XIII (begun 1787, Saint Peter's, Rome) and the Perseus with Medusa's Head (1801, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City), he became recognized as the foremost neoclassical sculptor of his day. Canova also received commissions from Napoleon, including the famous Maria Paulina Borghese as Venus Victrix (1805-7, Galleria Borghese, Rome), a serenely sensuous portrait of Napoleon's sister Pauline reclining. After the fall of Napoleon, Canova was sent to Paris to retrieve the art treasures the emperor had taken from Italy. He also worked on commissions in England. Canova died in Venice.