Rosso Fiorentino
1494–1540 · Renaissance & Mannerism
Biography
Most of what we know about Rosso Fiorentino’s life comes from the works of his contemporary, the painter and historian Giorgio Vasari (1511–1574), who in 1550 published his Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects. Dedicated to the great Florentine patron of the arts Cosimo I de’ Medici (1519–1574), the book contains biographies of many artists of the age, although the work is largely based on anecdotes and is unreliable in places. Nevertheless, its information is mostly accurate, including its portrayal of the exceptionally original painter who “had little in common with the other masters”. The book also describes how the artist left his native land prematurely (he spent the last decade of his life in France) after a quarrel with a Tuscan priest in which swords were drawn.
From the page of Deposition from the Cross
During his career Rosso Fiorentino had a great influence not only in his native Italy but also in France, where he worked from 1530 until his death in 1540. After a chance meeting in Venice, King Francis I himself (pictured) invited the artist, who spent the following decade mainly decorating the royal palace at Fontainebleau. His distinctive stuccoes and murals greatly influenced French artists in the following years, leading to the emergence of French Mannerism.
From the page of Musician Angel
