A painter and graphic designer from Croatia, Emanuel Vidovic. He created iridescent landscapes with textures of crepuscular light and color that were inspired by cities like Venice, Split, and Milan and found their way into Croatian and other European countries’ visual arts. He was a nineteenth-century artist who experimented with a variety of historical styles, including post-impressionism, art nouveau, and expressionism, before developing his own distinctive, contemporary look. He painted church interiors, and many of his early pieces are rooted in Slavic history. His handcrafted sarcastic caricatures, which portrayed him as a guy with a high level of social awareness, were featured in books and periodicals in Croatia. He was also a highly talented graphic artist. Through his artistic output, he rose to prominence and rose to become the aesthetic pride of his hometown of Split. In shows held in Croatia, Italy, Austria, London, and Bulgaria, he displayed his artwork.
Early Childhood & Life
Ivan Vidovic and Paskva gave birth to Emanuel Vidovic in Split on December 24, 1870.
The drawing was a significant component of his education at both the Imperial Royal High School and the local primary school where he first received his education.
He enrolled in the renowned Accademia di Belle Arti in Venice in 1887 with the intention of studying architecture, but after becoming disenchanted with the school and the methods he was taught, he dropped out after three years. He continued on his own, looking at and exploring his own abilities. He used his drawings of Venice’s scenery to support himself during this time.
He started working at the Famiglia Artistica in Milan in 1892, which was established as a part of the Scapigliatura movement by authors, poets, and artists. The movement’s bohemian vibe was what gave it its identity. There, Emanuel Vidovic started to hone and develop his exquisite landscapes.
Emanuel Vidovic’s Career
He was inspired by the picturesque vistas of the lagoons and canals of the fishing village of Chioggia, where he spent some time painting the scenes on his canvas when he displayed his first collection of works in Milan in 1894. These pieces were luminous and full of light, and they had a symbolic quality.
When he eventually made it back to Split, he became friends with a number of the city’s painters and artists, including Josip Lalic and Ante Katunaric. In 1898, he started working in his own studio in Split and started teaching art at a nearby high school. This was followed by a trip to Chioggia to complete a few more paintings.
In 1901, he participated in the inaugural exhibition of the Literary Art Club, a brand-new venue for modern art in Split, and displayed his paintings alongside those of Josip Lalic.
In the cities of Zagreb and Split in 1903, he had the chance to exhibit his work alone. He attended art exhibitions in London, Milan, Sofia, and Vienna thanks to the caliber of his work.
He started creating caricatures for the satirical newspaper Duje Balavac in 1908 as a way to dip his artistic fingers into the world of ridicule. The next year, he continued his career in education by accepting a position as a drawing professor at the School of Crafts in Split.
After the First World War, he started solo shows, first in Split and later in Prague in 1923. He also produced paintings of landscapes and building interiors in various pastel tones as his technique developed. Later, a body of work known as the Trogir landscapes appeared, garnering praise from critics and art lovers for having features that were separate from the symbolism of his Chioggia landscapes.
Between 1938 and 1942, his interior paintings started to take on a three-dimensional quality, giving them a lot more depth. He gained acclaim for his contributions to Croatian art and received invitations to prestigious European art festivals as a result. He became a member of the Yugoslav Academy of Arts and Sciences as a result.
His Bigger Works
Vidovic found lagoons and canals to be attractive, and on the lovely Italian island of Giudecca, he started his first paintings to realize his vision. He painted Giudecca, a piece incorporating divisionism techniques, or the use of dots and individual strokes depicting Neo-impressionism, in 1898 using twilight lighting and vibrant colors. His paintings of Chioggia were also produced around this time.
Many of his breathtaking vistas had the Croatian towns of Trogir and Split as their subjects. His notable collections, created around 1900, included “Little World,” “In the Lagoon,” and “Ships.”
In his later years, he started painting more still lifes, filling in the interiors with lighter and brighter colors while utilizing a darker palette for the background. Most of his works, including the “Split Cathedral” from 1939, had a poetic flavor.
Recognition & Achievements
Along with his friend Ivan Mestrovic and a group of Dalmatian painters, he created the Medulic Society in 1908; this organization used art to communicate its political message and incorporated poetry and heroic mythology from south Slavic traditions.
Personal Legacy & Life
In 1898, he wed Chioggia resident Amalija Baffo.
On June 1, 1953, Emanuel Vidovic passed away in Split, SFR Yugoslavia (current-day Croatia).
In a Romanesque home in the center of Split called Galerija Emanuel Vidovic, about a thousand of his paintings and drawings have survived.
Fact Through his satirical caricatures, Emanuel Vidovic conveyed his political opinions, supporting the separation of Croatia from Austria-Hungary.
Estimated Net Worth
Emanuel is among the wealthiest and most well-known painters. According to our research, Emanuel Vidovic has a net worth of $5 million, as reported by Forbes, Wikipedia, and Business Insider.