Franz Tavella


Franz Tavella was an Austrian master wood sculptor.

Biography

Franz Tavella was the son of Marianna Spisser and Filipp Tavella, who was a renowned wood sculptor as well. Franz during his youth worked under his father as a regular carpenter. At a later time he moved to Val Gardena, where the founder of the school of art of Ortisei in Val Gardena, Ferdinand Demetz, noticed his artistic talent and decided to take him as a pupil teaching him the art wood carving. After a few years Tavarella moved to Vienna, where for two years he attended the Academy of Fine Arts, his main mentor was Professor König.
In 1895 in Innsbruck he was given an award for his statue representing Saint Anne and the holy virgin Mary, which is now kept in the church of Pieve di Livinallongo. In 1897 he was given an award in Bolzano and in 1900 in Paris at the world exposition for his Pietà, nowadays kept in the chapel of the public cemetery of Bressanone.
In his workshop in Ortisei he tutored many renowned sculptors including Johann Baptist Moroder-Lusenberg, Rudolf Moroder, Ludwig Moroder from Ortisei and Valentin Gallmetzer from Chiusa.
In 1905 Tavella moved to Bressanone, where he died in poverty and sickness.

Renowned works

In the province of Bolzano

he sculpted a wooden statue of Saint Magdalen for the Ca'de Bezzi Family.

File:Saint-Joseph-Tavella.jpg|Saint Joseph in the church of Francescani in Bolzano
File:Saint-Joseph-Atzwang-2.jpg|Saint Joseph in the church of Campodazzo/Renon
File:Rosary-Madonna-Atzwang.jpg|the virgin of the rosary in the church of Campodazzo/Renon