Ottavio Leoni (sometimes spelled 'Lioni'), draughtsman and engraver was in his day the most fashionable portraitist in Rome. He is sometimes also referred to as the Cavaliere Ottavio, il Padovano, il Padovanino or Cavaliere Padovano. He was born in Rome, where he first trained with his father,
Lodovico Leoni. He painted altarpieces for churches in Rome such as an
Annunciation for
Sant'Eustachio, a
Virgin and child with St. Giacinto for
Santa Maria della Minerva, and a
Saints Charles, Francis, & Nicholas for Sant’ Urbano. He became a member, and later president, of the
Accademia di San Luca and a Cavaliere of the
Order of Christ, on which occasion he presented the church of the Academy the
Martyrdom of St. Martina. He died in Rome. Ottavio Leoni was also the engraver of a set of portraits of painters. His portrait of
Michelangelo Merisi Caravaggio is the only documented portrait of the painter by another artist. His work is exhibited in places such as
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco;
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston;
National Gallery of Art;
Bowes Museum;
Courtauld Institute of Art;
Los Angeles County Museum of Art; and Palazzo Ruspoli, Rome, Italy. ==References==