His father was a stonemason of Italian origin, working in Switzerland. In 1820, his family moved to accept work in Odessa. Until 1826, he studied with the Capuchins. After graduating, he worked in a shop that sold antiquarian books and prints. It was there that he began to draw and sketch. In 1828, he was hired by the Odessa Opera to work as an assistant to Rinaldo Nannini a stage designer who had studied at La Scala under Alessandro Sanquirico. He began to sell his paintings in 1833. His father died three years later and he found himself the sole support of his mother, his sister and her illegitimate son.
His father was a stonemason of Italian origin, working in Switzerland. In 1820, his family moved to accept work in Odessa. Until 1826, he studied with the Capuchins. After graduating, he worked in a shop that sold antiquarian books and prints. It was there that he began to draw and sketch. In 1828, he was hired by the Odessa Opera to work as an assistant to Rinaldo Nannini a stage designer who had studied at La Scala under Alessandro Sanquirico. He began to sell his paintings in 1833. His father died three years later and he found himself the sole support of his mother, his sister and her illegitimate son.