Sandro Botticelli (1444/5-1510)
REDISCOVERING BEAUTY
Although Italian painter Sandro Botticelli is hailed as one of the finest artists of the early Renaissance, his work had fallen into virtual obscurity with the emergence of the High Renaissance and preeminent artists such as da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael. Thus, Botticelli’s legacy remained dormant until the 19th century when the artistic pendulum swung back in favor of early Renaissance aesthetics.
Details about Botticelli’s early life are sketchy. Born in the prosperous city of Florence, he apprenticed with artist Fra Filippo Lippi for a few years before opening his own studio in 1470. Among Botticelli’s principal patrons was the distinguished and influential Medici family, whose benefaction helped establish his reputation as a foremost painter of the period. Botticelli’s quintessential works Primavera and Birth of Venus are thought to have been direct commissions for Florentine ruler Lorenzo de’ Medici, and they incorporate the mythological and Neoplatonic themes that proliferated in the intellectual Medici circle. The figures in the works appear to manifest both a delicate sensuality and a powerful presence. Their ethereal bodies seemingly float across the canvas; however, heavy outlines firmly anchor them into the frame and ultimately render space and dimension immaterial. The result is a tranquil beauty of the finest degree.
In 1481, Pope Sixtus IV invited Botticelli and several other artists to paint frescos on the wall of the Sistine Chapel; however, within two short decades, Botticelli’s body of work had fallen out of fashion, and he died in relative anonymity. —RJR
Notable works: Adoration of the Magi, 1475; Primavera, 1478; Birth of Venus, 1485 (page 32).
FUN FACT
Sandro Botticelli was christened Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi. His nickname is thought to derive from the Italian word botticello, which means “little barrel.”