Cooper Hewitt says...
Luigi Lucioni (American, b. Italy, 1900-1988), born Giuseppe Luigi Carlo Benevenuto Lucioni, grew up in the foothills of the Alps in a two-room apartment with his parents and three sisters. He showed an early interest in art, and began to study geometrical drawing at age six. In 1911, he and his family immigrated to New York City. Lucioni enrolled in first grade at age 11, after he had learned English. At age 15, he entered Cooper Union, where he studied art in night classes while working days at an engraving company. After graduating, he enrolled in the National Academy of Design, where he learned etching; he also worked in the art department of Fairchild Publications, the publisher of Women’s Wear Daily.
Lucioni was a realist painter of still lifes, portraits, and landscapes. His training in the medium of etching contributed to the photographic precision of his paintings. His work was marketed through Associated American Artists in New York. His portrait of Paul Cadmus was included in the Brooklyn Museum's show, "Youth and Beauty: Art of the American Twenties" (2010-2011), and was reproduced for the show's poster.
Lucioni lived with two of his sisters in New York City until their deaths. The three spent summers at a farmhouse in Manchester, Vermont. Lucioni died at age 87.
