Flemish (active in Italy)
XVIIth Century
Florence
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| Lieven Mehus, whose name was Italianised as Livio, was born in Flanders, Oudenaarde, but spent much of his career in Italy; he died in Florence in 1691. After travelling extensively, he settled in Florence, where he was highly appreciated by both the Medici court and the city’s aristocracy. His broad and varied body of work is still represented in numerous locations across the former Grand Duchy of Tuscany. |  |
Lieven Mehus, whose name was Italianised as Livio, was born in Flanders, Oudenaarde, but spent much of his career in Italy; he died in Florence in 1691. After travelling extensively, he settled in Florence, where he was highly appreciated by both the Medici court and the city’s aristocracy. His broad and varied body of work is still represented in numerous locations across the former Grand Duchy of Tuscany.
His itinerant life began at around the age of thirteen, when his father brought him to Italy. In 1640, the two were in Milan, where the young artist may have trained in the workshop of the battle painter known as Carlo Fiammingo, possibly identifiable as Carlo Spierincks.
While later travelling towards Rome, Mehus stopped first in Pistoia and then in Siena, where he worked in the studio of Giuliano Periccioli. He eventually reached Florence and entered the circle of Pietro da Cortona, who was then decorating the apartments of Palazzo Pitti. A restless period followed, marked by stays in Lucca, Genoa and Milan, as well as by a temporary interruption in his painting career.
By 1650 he was in Rome under the protection of Cardinal Carlo de’ Medici. There he came into contact with some of the leading artists of the period. His work was influenced by Caravaggism, Guercino and the Emilian tradition, but the study of ancient Roman art had an especially profound impact on his style. These influences frequently emerge in his landscapes and battle scenes, which also reveal his familiarity with the work of Salvator Rosa.
A stay in Venice lasting approximately three years further enriched his knowledge of Venetian painting. Upon returning to Tuscany, he received the patronage of Grand Prince Ferdinando de’ Medici, a sophisticated collector and promoter of the arts, who gathered around him some of the leading painters, sculptors and musicians of his time.
Mehus became one of the most notable followers of Pietro da Cortona, particularly in his religious paintings.