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c. 1725-1730

The Catechism in the Cathedral of Milan

Alessandro Magnasco, also called Lissandro and Lissandrino

Italian (active Genoa, Milan, Venice, and Florence) 1667 - 1749

This painting depicts a group of boys receiving religious instruction in a large neighborhood church. The church schools established in Milan to increase the literacy of poor and working class youths constituted the first free public schools in a large European city. The sketchy quality of the paint, a hallmark of Magnasco's style, was much appreciated at the time for its lively rendering of figures.

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