using photographs. One of Hayez's favorite themes was semi-clothed Odalisque evocative of oriental themes – a favorite topic of Romantic painters. The depictions of harems and their women allowed artists the ability to paint scenes otherwise not acceptable within society. Even Hayez's Mary Magdalene has more sensuality than religious fervor. Hayez's painting The Kiss was considered among his best work by his contemporaries, and is possibly his most well-known effort. The anonymous, unaffected gesture of the couple does not require knowledge of myth or literature to interpret, and appeals to a modern gaze. A scientific assessment of Hayez's career has been made complicated by his proclivity for not signing or dating his works. Often dates in his paintings indicate when the work was acquired or sold, not the time of its creation. Moreover, he often painted the same compositions several times with minimal variations if any at all. Among his pupils from the Brera Academy were Carlo Belgioioso, Amanzio Cattaneo, Alessandro Focosi, Giovanni Battista Lamperti, Livo Pecora, Angelo Pietrasanta, Antonio Silo, Ismaele Teglio Milla and Francesco Valaperta.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=W_FYAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA48 Delle arti del designo e degli artisti nelle provincie di Lombardia dal 1777-1862] by Antonio Caini (1862). Presso Luigi di Giacomo Pirola, Milan. Page 61.</ref> Hayez died in Milan, age 91. His studio at the Brera Academy is marked with a plate. GallerySee also :Category:Paintings by Francesco Hayez.'' See also Christian art List of Orientalist artists Orientalism Neo-romanticism References 1791 births 1882 deaths 18th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 19th-century Italian painters 19th-century Italian male artists 19th-century painters of historical subjects Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia alumni Academic staff of Brera Academy Burials at the Cimitero Monumentale di Milano Italian romantic painters Italian portrait painters Italian people of French descent Orientalist painters Painters from Venice 18th-century Italian male artists