Andrea di Cione di Arcangelo (c. 1308 – 25 August 1368), better known as Orcagna, was an Italian painter, sculptor, and architect active in

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

. He worked as a consultant at the Florence Cathedral and supervised the construction of the façade at the Orvieto Cathedral. His ''Strozzi Altarpiece'' (1354–57) is noted as defining a new role for

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

as a source of Catholic doctrine and papal authority.

Works

Orcagna's works include: * "Altarpiece of the Redeemer" (1354–57) in the ''Strozzi di Mantova'' Chapel at

Santa Maria Novella Santa Maria Novella is a church in Florence, Italy, situated opposite, and lending its name to, the city's main railway station. Chronologically, it is the first great basilica in Florence, and is the city's principal Dominican church. The ch ...

, Florence * The tabernacle in

Orsanmichele Orsanmichele or Orsammichele (; from the Tuscan contraction of ''Orto di San Michele'', "Kitchen Garden of St. Michael") is a church in the Italian city of Florence. The building was constructed on the site of the kitchen garden of the monaster ...

(finished 1359) which was regarded as "the most perfect work of its kind in Italian Gothic". * His fresco ''The Triumph of Death'' inspired

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

's masterwork '' Totentanz''. * His fresco ''Crucifixion'' with a multitude of angels surrounding the cross, portrayed on a dark background and a few fragments of the Last Supper (1365). The mosaic decoration and the rose window of the cathedral of Orvieto is attributed to Orcagna, who had become Master of the Works in 1359.

Pupils

Among Orcagna's pupils and legacy were: * Nello di Vanni, a

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

n painter of the 14th century, who also worked for the Campo Santo. Nello di Vanni is conjectured to be identical with Bernardo Nello or Giovanni Falcone. * Tommaso del Mazza, called Tomasso di Marco by

Giorgio Vasari Giorgio Vasari (30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance painter, architect, art historian, and biographer who is best known for his work ''Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects'', considered the ideol ...

Jacopo di Cione Jacopo di Cione (c. 1325 – c. 1399) was an Italian Gothic period painter in the Republic of Florence. Life and career Born in Florence between 1320 and 1330, he is closely associated with his three older brothers Andrea di Cione di Arcange ...

, brother of Andrea and mainly sculptor and architectVasari, page 610.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Gothic painters Trecento painters 1300s births 1368 deaths Painters from Florence Painters from Tuscany Architects from Florence 14th-century people from the Republic of Florence 14th-century Italian architects 14th-century Italian painters Italian Roman Catholics Italian male painters Sibling artists