Saint Peter

Guido Reni prints bring the grace, calm and luminous colour of one of the most admired Baroque painters into your home. Reni trained in the Carracci academy in Bologna, painted the famous Aurora ceiling in Rome and became the leading figure of the Bolognese school. Our collection of fine art prints includes his saints and Madonnas, heads of Christ, mythological scenes, drawings and etchings.

About Guido Reni

Guido Reni was born in Bologna in 1575 into a family of musicians. At nine he was apprenticed to the Flemish painter Denis Calvaert, alongside Francesco Albani and Domenichino. Around twenty the three moved to the rival academy of Ludovico Carracci, and Reni painted his first altarpieces there before leaving after a quarrel over pay in 1598.

By 1601 he was in Rome, working with Annibale Carracci's team on the Farnese Palace frescoes. Between 1607 and 1614 he was one of the painters most favoured by Pope Paul V's Borghese family, and for Cardinal Scipione Borghese he painted his fresco masterpiece, Aurora, showing Apollo's chariot led by the goddess of dawn.

In 1618 he went to Naples to paint a ceiling in the cathedral, but local painters were so hostile that, according to rumour, they plotted to harm him, and he returned to Bologna. There he ran a large workshop and became the city's leading painter. A compulsive gambler, he was often in debt despite constant demand for his work. He died in Bologna on 18 August 1642 and was buried in the Basilica of San Domenico.

Style and Subjects

Reni worked in the Baroque age but in a classical manner: balanced compositions, idealised faces and calm, elegant poses, often borrowed from ancient sculpture. His colours are clear and luminous, quite unlike the dark shadows of Caravaggio's followers.

He painted mostly religious subjects, with saints gazing heavenward, Madonnas and the suffering Christ, as well as myths such as Atalanta and Hippomenes. In the 1630s his style became lighter and looser, with pale silvery tones.

Famous Works

• Massacre of the Innocents (1611), Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna. Mothers try to save their babies from Herod's soldiers, in a tightly balanced composition.
• Aurora (about 1612–1616), Casino dell'Aurora, Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi, Rome. Apollo's chariot, led by Dawn, brings light to the world.
• Saint Sebastian (about 1615), Capitoline Museums, Rome. The young martyr bound to a tree, one of several versions he painted.
• Atalanta and Hippomenes (1622–1625), Museo di Capodimonte, Naples. The huntress stoops for a golden apple as she races Hippomenes.
• Charity (about 1630), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A mother with children, an allegory of love.
• Penitent Magdalene (1631), Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica, Rome. Mary Magdalene gazing upward in repentance.
• The Rape of Europa (1637), National Gallery, London. Europa carried across the sea on the back of the bull.

Decorating with Reni Prints

Reni's single saints and Madonnas, with their soft colour and upturned faces, suit quiet, personal rooms: a bedroom, reading corner or hallway. A print such as Head of Christ Crowned with Thorns or The Immaculate Conception looks best in a gilt or dark wood frame against a plain wall.

His mythological scenes have a lighter, more decorative feel and suit a living room or dining room in a traditional or classic style. The drawings and etchings make a refined group for a study.

FAQ

What art movement was Guido Reni part of?

Reni was a Baroque painter of the Bolognese school, trained in the Carracci academy, though his work has a calm, classical character.

What is Guido Reni's most famous work?

His ceiling fresco Aurora in the Casino dell'Aurora in Rome is his best-known work. His paintings of Saint Sebastian and Atalanta and Hippomenes are also famous.

Who influenced Guido Reni?

He trained with Denis Calvaert and then with Ludovico Carracci, and worked under Annibale Carracci in Rome. Classical sculpture also shaped his poses.

Did Guido Reni paint Beatrice Cenci?

The famous "Portrait of Beatrice Cenci" was long credited to him, but it is now considered a doubtful attribution, since she was executed before Reni lived in Rome.

Where can I see Guido Reni's paintings?

Major works are in the Pinacoteca Nazionale in Bologna, the Capitoline Museums and Galleria Nazionale in Rome, the Museo di Capodimonte in Naples, the Louvre and the National Gallery in London.

Related Artists

• Ludovico Carracci: head of the academy where Reni trained
• Annibale Carracci: led the Farnese Palace team Reni joined in Rome
• Domenichino: his fellow pupil in Bologna
• Francesco Albani: his fellow pupil who went with him to Rome
• Guercino: Bolognese painter of the next generation