Franco Digitelli was born on the backstreets of Naples, Italy, but left aged 7 and settled in London. Growing up in Clerkenwell, he began sketching portraits of local people in the market to earn pocket money and soon made enough to set up his first studio in nearby Camden. Though Franco had a keen eye on contemporary trends, he was increasingly drawn to the work of the master portraitists such as Titian, Rembrandt and Vermeer. This enduring admiration is clearly evident in his work today.
