Guglielmo Lochis


Count Guglielmo Lochis was an Italian nobleman, politician, art collector and art connoisseur.
Born in Mozzo into a family which had been active in Bergamo since the 16th century and which had held the title of count since the 18th century, he entered public life in 1816 as a member of the Lombard-Venetian guard during Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor's visit to Bergamo. In 1835 Bergamo's Accademia Carrara made him its auction commissioner, whilst he also served as the city's podestà from 1842 to 1848, with his resignation from the latter role triggered by the Revolutions of 1848. He died in Bergamo.

Collection

He acquired several artworks in the 1820s, gathering a collection of around 500 works in Villa delle Crocette in Mozzo, which became a stop on the tourist-trail in the area. Two-thirds of the collection were left to the city as the Fondo Lochis on the stipulation that they remain in the Villa, with the rest remaining with the family or sold off on the art market - Portrait of a Scholar or Portrait of a Gentleman of the Albani Family by Giovan Battista Moroni, for example, is now in a private collection in Berlin. The city found the will's condition hard to meet and so in 1866 renegotiated with Guglielmo's heir Carlo to allow the works to be hung in a room in the Accademia Carrara with the Lochis coat of arms over the door.
The works which went to the Accademia included