CISERI, ANTONIO. - Painter, b. at Ronco in the canton of Ticino in 1821, d. at Florence in 1891.
A pupil of Bezzuoli in Florence, whither he had moved in 1833, he inherited from his master a solid academic training and the fervour of Romantic ideas, but strengthened his own style through the study of the ancients and careful observation of nature. He painted some of the most celebrated religious works of the past century. Especially well known are: I Maccabei (Florentine church of S. Felicita, 1863); Il Trasporto di Cristo (Madonna del Sasso at Locarno, 1871); L'Ecce homo (Gallery of Modern Art, Florence, 1890). These paintings are composed with skill and a vivid dramatic sense. His drawings are admirable, his portraits masterly, his sketches swift and effective.