Brumidi is most famous for his painting "The Apotheosis of Washington," in the eye of the Rotunda, depicting George Washington rising to the heavens in glory. It is suspended 180 feet above the Rotunda floor and covers 1/3 of a football field.

But how many know he spent 25 years painting various frescoes/murals, and was a master of creating the illusion of three-dimensional forms and figures on flat walls.

Brumidi's vivid, bright colors of American birds, flowers and other wildlife can be found in what are known as the Brumidi Corridors, on the first floor of the Senate wing.

Constantino painted in the Vatican and Roman palaces before immigrating to the United States in 1852 Mr. Brumidi also painted in churches in New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and St. Aloysius Church in NW/DC.

The President is being urged to award Brumidi the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The Washington Times
By Arlo Wagner
July 26, 2004

Americans of Italian and Roman descent gathered on a sparsely grassed cemetery slope in Northeast yesterday to celebrate the 199th anniversary of the birth of Constantino Brumidi and urge President Bush to award the artist with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

    An exile from Italy, Mr. Brumidi was nearly 50 when he was employed for $8 a day to paint the inside of the U.S. Capitol. He was on the job for 25 years before nearly falling from a ladder. Mr. Brumidi died of natural causes a few months later in 1880.

    His most famous painting is "The Apotheosis of Washington," in the eye of the Rotunda. The painting depicts George Washington rising to the heavens in glory, flanked by female figures representing Liberty and Victory/Fame. It is suspended 180 feet above the Rotunda floor and covers an area of 4,664 square feet.

    "He was a great man as an artist. He was a Renaissance man. He loved poetry. He loved music. He loved America," said Joseph N. Grano, president of the Constantino Brumidi Society. "He believed that this was a country that he could go to and express himself."

    At a ceremony yesterday at the Glenwood Cemetery where Mr. Brumidi is buried, the celebrants gathered around a black metal-stake fence that guarded a headstone, which bore Mr. Brumidi's quote: "My one ambition and my daily prayer is that I may live long enough to make beautiful the Capitol of the one country on earth in which there is liberty."

    Soprano Maria Glover, a local law student and a runner-up to Miss D.C. in last year's Miss America contest, sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "America the Beautiful."

    Tenor Giuseppe Taormina, a native of Italy now living in New York City, sang the national anthem of Italy and "How Great Thou Art."

    Pino Cicala, of the Lido Civic Club, which helped find Mr. Brumidi's grave site, laid a bouquet of flowers at his headstone, and Gonzaga College High School Chaplain Robert Rokusek recited several prayers.

    Mr. Brumidi's supporters believe Americans did not appreciate his artistry until 1950, when Congress paid for a grave marker for Mr. Brumidi's final resting place. The marker is in a corner of the cemetery, near North Capitol Street, which overlooks the U.S. Capitol.

    "His grave was forgotten for 70 years," Mr. Grano said.

    Earlier this year, Congress passed a resolution honoring Mr. Brumidi and calling on Mr. Bush to issue a proclamation to commemorate the bicentennial of his birth. Now, the Italian-American and Greek-American organizations, as well as the Constantino Brumidi Society, are calling on Mr. Bush to honor Mr. Brumidi with the country's highest civilian awards, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

    A master of creating the illusion of three-dimensional forms and figures on flat walls, Mr. Brumidi painted frescoes and murals throughout the Capitol from 1855 until his death.

    The beauty of Mr. Brumidi's works began making an impression about 10 years ago when the architect of the Capitol decided to clean the grime and superficial paint from Mr. Brumidi's frescoes.

    As the dirt was cleared, Mr. Brumidi's vivid, bright colors of American birds, flowers and other wildlife resurfaced. They can be found in what became known as the Brumidi Corridors, on the first floor of the Senate wing.

    Mr. Brumidi was born in 1805 in Rome. He trained in Rome and had painted in the Vatican and Roman palaces before immigrating to the United States in 1852 after Pope Pius IX accused him of being a revolutionary and a thief. He had a wife and two children in Italy. In the District, he lived with Lola Germon and had a son. Remarried, Mrs. Germon arranged for Mr. Brumidi's burial in Glenwood.

    Mr. Brumidi also painted in churches in New York City, Philadelphia and Baltimore, and in the District at St. Aloysius Church in Northwest

Capitol's artist feted better late than never - The Washington Times: Metropolitan - July 26, 2004
http://washingtontimes.com/metro/
20040725-102648-5063r.htm