Andrea di Niccolò, also Andrea di Niccolò di Giacomo, (1440–1514) was an Italian painter of the Sienese School.

Life

Andrea di Niccolò was an artist from

Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...

. Archival documents reveal in 1469 he married Angelica di Francesco di Michele, and in 1470 he collaborated with

Giovanni di Paolo Giovanni di Paolo di Grazia (''c.'' 1403–1482) was an Italian painter, working primarily in Siena, becoming a prolific painter and illustrator of manuscripts, including Dante's texts. He was one of the most important painters of the 15th cent ...

on some works for

Santa Maria della Scala (Siena) Santa Maria della Scala (also referred to as the Hospital, Ospedale, and Spedale) is located in Siena, Italy. Now a museum, it was once an important civic hospital dedicated to caring for abandoned children, the poor, the sick, and pilgrims. Reven ...

, and in that same year worked on creating a

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

for Oratorio della Campania in San Bernardino. In the year 1477 he frescoed additional works in this Oratorio with scenes of the life of

Saint Lucy Lucia of Syracuse ( – 304 AD), also called Saint Lucia () and better known as Saint Lucy, was a Roman people, Roman Christian martyr who died during the Diocletianic Persecution. She is venerated as a saint in Catholic Church, Catholic, Angl ...

. Andrea di Niccolò worked primarily around Siena and its surrounding towns. The art scholar

Bernard Berenson Bernard Berenson (June 26, 1865 – October 6, 1959) was an American art historian specializing in the Renaissance. His book ''The Drawings of the Florentine Painters'' was an international success. His wife Mary is thought to have had a large ...

noted Andrea was a pupil of

Vecchietta Lorenzo di Pietro (1410 – June 6, 1480), known as Vecchietta, was an Italian Sienese School painter, sculptor, goldsmith, and architect of the Renaissance. He is among the artists profiled in Vasari's '' Le Vite delle più eccellenti pittori, ...

, and demonstrated influences of

Matteo di Giovanni Matteo di Giovanni (c. 1430 – 1495) was an Italian Renaissance artist from the Sienese School. Biography Matteo di Giovanni di Bartolo was born in Borgo Sansepolcro around 1430. His family relocated to Siena and he is firmly associated with ...

and

Pietro Perugino Pietro Perugino ( ; ; born Pietro Vannucci or Pietro Vanucci; – 1523), an Italian Renaissance painter of the Umbrian school, developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance. Raphael became his most famou ...

Works

The museum

Pinacoteca Nazionale (Siena) The Pinacoteca Nazionale is a national museum in Siena, Tuscany, Italy. Inaugurated in 1932, it houses especially late medieval and Renaissance paintings from Italian artists. It is housed in the Brigidi and Buonsignori palaces in the city's cente ...

has his painting ''

Madonna and Child In Christian art, a Madonna () is a religious depiction of the Blessed Virgin Mary in a singular form or sometimes accompanied by the Child Jesus. These images are central icons for both the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches. The word ...

with Four Saints'', and has the signature and date (circa 1500). His brush has also been attributed to a few typical Sienese ''Madonna with Saints'', preserved in private collections. One of his most famous works is in the parish church of Santa Maria Assunta (

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Catholic Mariology#Dogmatic teachings, Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of w ...

) in the small village of

Casole d'Elsa Casole d'Elsa �kaːzoleis a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italy, Italian region Tuscany, located about southwest of Florence and about west of Siena. Main sights The church of ''San Niccolò'', of Romanesque arc ...

near Siena. This altarpiece with arc-shaped pinnacles and

predella In art a predella (plural predelle) is the lowest part of an altarpiece, sometimes forming a platform or step, and the painting or sculpture along it, at the bottom of an altarpiece, sometimes with a single much larger main scene above, but oft ...

, was painted by the artist in 1498. On it is a signature of Andrea. In the upper part, he portrayed ''

Massacre of the Innocents The Massacre (or Slaughter) of the Innocents is a story recounted in the Nativity narrative of the Gospel of Matthew ( 2:16– 18) in which Herod the Great, king of Judea, orders the execution of all male children who are two years old and u ...

'', clearly inspired by the work of Matteo di Giovanni, and in the middle of the ''Madonna with Child and Saints''. Themes of works by Andrea di Niccolò was almost entirely religious. Other works of his include: * ''Virgin and Child between Saint Jerome and Saint Peter'' (1500,

Fitzwilliam Museum The Fitzwilliam Museum is the art and antiquities University museum, museum of the University of Cambridge. It is located on Trumpington Street opposite Fitzwilliam Street in central Cambridge. It was founded in 1816 under the will of Richard ...

, England) * ''The Crucifixion'' (1502, Pinacoteca Nazionale, Siena) * ''Madonna and Child with John the Baptist and St. Jerome'' (Siena County Museum of Religious Art) * ''Madonna and Child with Angels and Saints'' (1504, Museum of Art, Cincinnati, USA) * ''Madonna and Child with Saints'' (1510, Mustola Santa delle Rose, Siena) * ''Mass of Gregory'' (Paris, Bonn collection) He also painted works which depict an allegorical figure of the ''Faith'' and ''Mercy''. It was a series, consisting of three parts (the third painting of ''Hope'', kept in a private collection in England). Similar series depicting allegorical figures symbolizing the human virtues, in the second half of the 15th century became very popular. The purpose of this series is not entirely clear; experts suggest that it may have been created to decorate a

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is us ...

. The last work of the artist were the frescoes in the church of Santa Maria and Pyantasala in a small town Kashyano di Muro at Siena, started in 1514.

Gallery

File:Andrea di Niccolo f-1-Галерея Уайлденстайн и Ко.jpg, ''Charity'', File:Andrea di niccolò, pietà, da duomo di grosseto, 1490 circa.JPG, ''Pieta'', File:Andrea di niccolò, madonna col bambino e santi 02.JPG, ''Madonna and Child with Saints''

References

* Diana Norman. Painting in Late Medieval and Renaissance Siena. (1260—1555). Yale University Press. 2003. * Giulietta Dini. Five Centuries of Sienese Painting (From Duccio to the Birth of the Baroque). Thames & Hudson. 1998. {{DEFAULTSORT:Niccolo, Andrea di 1440 births 1514 deaths 16th-century Italian painters 15th-century Italian painters Italian male painters Painters from Siena