Monday, October 31, 2011

Fra Bartolomeo | Florentine Renaissance Painter

Fra Bartolomeo was born in Florence, Italy on 28 March 1472 and died on 31 October 1517.

A leading artist of the Italian Renaissance, he initially trained under Cosimo Rosselli, and opened a worshop with a fellow pupil, Mariotto Albertinelli.

He entered the Dominican Order in 1500, reportedly due to the influence of Savronela's preaching, and from that point on restricted his painting to religious subjects only.

Fra Bartolomeo's contemporaries included Leonardo, Raphael, and Bellini, and their artistic influences appear in his use of sfumato, composition, and the way he addressed landscapes in his paintings.

His work is characterized by a reserved approach to the thematic content, and solidly painted forms.

You can read more about his work and biography at The Oxford Dictionary of Art  and The Web Gallery of Art.

A few of his monumental works are displayed below:

The Adoration of the Christ Child  c. 1499 
Tempera on wood, diameter 89 cm 
Galleria Borghese, Rome

Prophet Isaiah   c. 1516  
Panel, 168 x 108 cm  
Galleria dell'Accademia, Florence  

The Marriage of St Catherine of Siena 1511 
Wood panel, 257 x 228 cm 
Musée du Louvre, Paris