Piero della FrancescaPiero della Francesca was born in the decade between 1410 and 1420 but his exact date of birth is unknown. He studied under the guidance of Domenico Veneziano and Domenico's interest in colour and his study of light made him the perfect teacher for the young artist. Most of piero's work was executed in his home town of Borgo Santo Sepolcro or in Arezzo located in Tuscany to the south-east of Florence. His work was neglected for centuries and he was not well regarded in his lifetime. This lack of fame was due to the fact that he never worked in Florence as a mature artist, Piero only worked in Florence as an apprentice and was hardly influenced by Florentine ideas. In 1442 he was commissioned to paint an altarpiece for the church of the Misericordia in Borgo. He also painted frescos in the Castello Estense and in the church of Sant'Andrea in Farrara, but these paintings are sadly lost.
The Baptism of Christ, (w)
Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta.
Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta Praying in Front of St. Sigismund. Piero executed a portrait of Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta, the lord of the city state of Rimini. His work in Rimini included the fresco of Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta Praying in Front of St. Sigismund. In 1452 he began his famous fresco cycle "The Story of the True Cross" for the basilica of San Francesco in Arezzo. Based on stories from the Golden Legend, this is considered to be a Renaissance masterpiece.
"The Dream of Constantine." The artist moved to Rome and painted frescos in the Santa Maria Maggiore but these works, and his Vatican City paintings, have been destroyed. Two notable works from about 1460 are "The Flagellation" and "The Resurrection". In 1472 he painted his famous double portrait of the Duke and Duchess of Urbino, and it is thought that the portrait of the Duchess may be in commemoration of her death, also in 1472.
"The Resurrection".
The sleeping man, second from the left, is reputed to be a self-portrait of the artist. (w)
"The Flagellation" (w) Piero's last works are the Brera Altarpiece with "The Madonna and Child with angels and six saints", and his unfinished "Nativity", about 1475 or later. During his life Piero della Francesca was interested in the study of perspective and this is apparent in his work. He was also fascinated by mathematics and wrote two treatises, one on pure mathematics and one on perspective in painting. Piero does not seem to have painted anything in the later years of his life and may have been blind, he died on October 12th 1492, the same day that Columbus discovered America.
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