De Carolis (De Karolis), Adolfo

DE CAROLIS (DE KAROLIS), ADOLFO. - Painter and engraver, b. at Montafiore dell'Aso, 6 Jan. 1874 and d. at Rome, 7 Feb. 1928. Having entered in Rome the group "In arte libertas," which was headed by Giovanni Costa, he made his debut with works of a Pre-Raphaelite flavor (Madonna with Angels, entitled: Laudata sii... of 1900). Turning to fresco, he nourished his spirit with heroic visions of a D'Annunzian flavor, while on the other hand he studied the works of Michelangelo and Correggio. His decorative ensembles, always dignified, nevertheless prove to be sustained more by cerebral values than by intimately pictorial values. He decorated the Hall of the Four Thousand in the Palazzo del Podestà in Bologna (1911-28), the Aula Magna of the University of Pisa, the church of S. Francesco in Ravenna, the council chambers of the provinces of Ascoli Piceno and Arezzo, the church of S. Ginesio, the chapel of S. Francesco in the basilica of the Santo in Padua, etc. But even his religious compositions, however, often appear more illuminated by the intellect than enlivened by faith and warmed by the heart.

With skillful technique he practiced woodcut, obtaining notable results in book decoration: highly appreciated are the friezes and covers that he provided for numerous books by Pascoli and D'Annunzio.

Corrado Mezzana