Giovanni Battista Calò

Giovanni Battista Calò (July 16, 1832 – August 28, 1895) was an Italian painter of the 19th century.

Biography Giovanni Battista Calò was born in Barletta, in the region of Apulia, as a boy he developed a passion for art and so at the age of 18 he managed to move to Naples to study under the guidance of Giuseppe Mancinelli at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Napoli. Trained as a portrait painter, at the age of 30 he was suddenly struck by tuberculosis, from which he managed to recover.

He later undertook a series of trips to Europe. He painted the false ceiling depicting the Sun Chariot and one of the stage backdrops for the . He took part in the exhibitions in Naples and Venice. He was the teacher of Giuseppe De Nittis, one of the most important impressionist painters, and trained other important painters from Barletta including Geremia Discanno, , and Giuseppe Gabbiani.

Many of his works are preserved in the located on the first floor of the castle, thanks to the Gabbiani donation. Others are scattered in numerous churches in Puglia, including the .

He died in his hometown in 1895, at the age of sixty-three, and was buried in the .

Specializing mainly as a portraitist, his production also includes images of sacred subjects, landscapes and genre paintings.

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