Ioannis Altamouras (Greek: Ιωάννης Αλταμούρας) (Florence or Naples, 1852 – Spetses, 1878) was an outstanding Greek painter of the 19th century famous for his paintings of seascapes.[1]
Altamouras father was the Italian painter Francesco Saverio Altamura and his mother was the aristocrat and first Greek female painter from Spetses Eleni Boukoura-Altamoura. At the age of seven years his father has abandoned the family. His mother then took him along with his sister Sophia and moved to Athens in order to be able to manage better her life. From an early age, Ioannis has exhibited his artistic skills in painting. He has been accepted to the Athens School of Fine Arts, where he studied painting along with Nikiphoros Lytras during the years 1871–1872. With a scholarship of King George II he was able to continue his studies in Copenhagen from 1873 to 1876 near Carl Frederik Sørensen. In 1875 and while he was still in Copenhagen he has sent to the artistic competition of Olympion in Athens his painting The port of Copenhagen who won the second award.[1] He returned to Athens where he opened his own painting atelier while his fame and reputation was rapidly expanding. Unfortunately he died from tuberculosis only at the age of 26. His death has led his mother to a nervous breakdown and subsequently madness.[2]
From the Old West to Europe and the Sea, somewhat contemporaneously. There aren’t many of these as the artist died quite young. What he left behind is striking…