40 - PIO JORIS (Rome, 1843–1921)

PIO JORIS (Rome, 1843–1921) “Courtyard,” Rome. Watercolor on paper. Signed and dated in the lower right corner. Measurements: 52 x 38 cm; 64 x 50 cm (frame) Pio Joris trained at the School of Fine Arts and the Accademia di San Luca in Rome. In 1861, a visit to the first National Exhibition of Fine Arts in Florence, where he discovered the naturalist works of the Neapolitan school, led him to move there in 1856. Upon his return to Rome, he became close friends with Mariano Fortuny, whose style would influence his painting. His works soon achieved international fame, especially as a result of his collaboration with the Parisian art dealer Alphonse Goupil. In the 1870s, he traveled through Spain, and in the following years he achieved his greatest successes, both in Italy and abroad. In fact, in 1900, he won a gold medal at the Paris Salon and was awarded the French Legion of Honor. Works by Joris are currently held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Bucharest Art Collections, and other collections.