Francesco Hayez was an Italian painter born in Venice. He was famous for his portraits of nobility, religious scenes and oriental themes involving semi-naked women. Hayez studied in Venice, then Rome and Naples. He then moved to Milan, where he was appointed Director of the Academy of Brera, in 1850. One of Francesco Hayez’ most famous paintings, The Kiss, is a classic symbol of the Italian Romanticism Movement painting, depicting an embrace between a couple.