According to the Netherlands Institute for Art History (RKD), Lusieri travelled in Naples, Greece, and Turkey.

Lusieri believed that he might have been more famous as an artist had he not spent so much time working for Lord Elgin and his antiquity collection.

He had originally been known for the accurate landscapes and studies of buildings in Italy and Sicily that he often sold to young gentlemen on their Grand Tour, especially after he moved to Naples in 1782 and concentrated on views of Mount Vesuvius.

Lord Byron regarded him as an important Italian artist, although he may have been biased as he was also the good friend of Lusieri's brother-in-law, Nicolo Giraud.

It was Lusieri who persuaded the reluctant Elgin to remove the sculptures in order to protect them from local Turkish opportunists, who were breaking off bits to sell to tourists.