Virgin and Child with Saint Anne
Masaccio · 1424
Masaccio
1401–1428
Masaccio, born Tommaso di Ser Giovanni di Simone, was a Florentine artist who is regarded as the first great Italian painter of the Quattrocento period of the Italian Renaissance. According to Vasari, Masaccio was the best painter of his generation because of his skill at imitating nature, recreating lifelike figures and movements as well as a convincing sense of three-dimensionality. He employed nudes and foreshortenings in his figures. This had seldom been done before him. The name Masaccio is a humorous version of Maso (short for Tommaso), meaning "clumsy" or "messy" Tom.
Known works
Pisa Polyptych
Masaccio · 1426
Getty Center
The Pisa Altarpiece was a large multi-paneled altarpiece produced by Masaccio for the chapel of Saint Julian in the church of Santa Maria del Carmine in Pisa. The chapel was owned by the notary Giuliano di Colino, who commissioned the work on February 19, 1426 for the sum of 80 florins. Payment for the work was recorded on December 26 of that year.
Sources
Invite Masaccio into your living room
