13.05.2026 – 11.10.2026
Johann Baptist Lampi the Elder created several portraits of the Tomatis family in Warsaw in 1788/89. Catarina, née Filipazzi, a dancer originally from Milan, had moved to the city in 1765 with the entrepreneur Carlo Tomatis. One of the three portraits depicts two of the couple’s children, Caroline and Viktor, with a bust positioned between them. During an examination using X-ray and infrared radiation in 2016, this turned out to be a layer of paint. Hidden beneath the bust lies the figure of the mother, Catarina, embracing her children. The exhibition tells the story of the Tomatis family through further portraits and archival materials. Infrared and X-ray images were also taken in 2022 of the painting *Venus Sleeping on a Reclining Bed* by Johann Baptist Lampi the Younger. These reveal a Cupid hidden beneath a black area. The mythological content receded into the background due to the obliteration of the god of love, with the result that in the 20th century the work was interpreted in two Salzburg regional novels as a portrait of Emilie Victoria Kraus, a mistress of Napoleon. It was precisely this misinterpretation that brought the painting widespread popularity, which even reached as far as Paraguay. Following the uncovering of Cupid in 2024, the painting is now being presented to the public for the first time under its original title.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Johann Baptist Lampi the Elder and the Younger
13.05.2026 – 11.10.2026
Oberes Belvedere
Prinz Eugen-Straße 27
1030 Vienna
www.belvedere.at
