Tommaso Colonnello was born in Buenos Aires on September 9, 1896, belonging to a family from Ortona, Italy, that had been trading with India since the early 1800s. The family moved to Bombay when Tommaso was still 12, and he attended St. Mary's Jesuit College. After completing his studies, at age 18 he returned to Italy and fought in
World War I. When the war was over he married Clementina Costanzo, and with his wife left for New York, where he devoted himself to the study of Oriental art and decoration. For some years he learned the use of
Lacquer painting from Chinese masters. Then with the onset of the Depression he moved to India where he received a major commission: the decoration of the ballroom of the
Rashtrapati Bhavan, palace of the viceroy in
New Delhi. This work was completed in 1933 with the help of 12 Indian painters. In 1938 he moved to Milan with his wife and two daughters. In Italy, however, his art was not as successful, and after World War II he moved to Buenos Aires where he had good success. He later returned to Italy where he continued to produce his artwork in Ortona until his death on June 20, 1975. == Citations in India ==