Tommaso Dolabella

Tommaso Dolabella (* 1570 in Belluno, † January 17, 1650 in Kraków ) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active in Poland.

Dolabella was a pupil of the painter of Greek descent based in Venice Antonio Vassilacchi and worked at the decoration of the Ducal Palace in Venice. He came to Poland in 1600 and became court painter of Polish kings Sigismund III. Wasa, Władysław IV Vasa, and John II Casimir Vasa.

He created images of religious content to order the Krakow monasteries and Wawel Cathedral. He also painted many portraits. His specific for the Wawel Castle historic and allegorical images are missing. The painting " Battle of Lepanto " survived in the Poznan Dominican church as well as images in Krakow churches.

Dolabella brought the style of the Venetian Late Renaissance by Paolo Veronese and Jacopo Tintoretto to Poland. He had a significant influence on the Polish painting. The then standard tempera painting on wood was replaced by oil painting on canvas.

Source

• Władysław Tomkiewicz, " Dolabella ," Wydawnictwo Arkady, Warszawa 1959