Sandro Botticelli

Apprenticed to Fra Filippo Lippi around 1461, Botticelli learned to create melancholic figures with clear contours, a style that fundamentally shaped his early artistic development.¹

The nickname Botticelli, meaning 'little barrel', derived from his brother's nickname. Born Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi, he had fully adopted the name Sandro Botticelli by 1470.¹

In 1472, he took on Filippino Lippi, his former master's son, as his first apprentice. Their early works are often difficult to distinguish due to their close collaboration.¹

Supported by powerful patrons like the Vespucci family, allies of the Medici, his 1475 'Adoration of the Magi' featured Medici portraits and significantly boosted his reputation.¹

The 1480s were his most successful decade, during which he completed his large mythological masterpieces and many of his most famous Madonna paintings.¹

Botticelli lived almost his entire life in the Ognissanti neighborhood of Florence, with rare exceptions including his work on the Sistine Chapel in Rome between 1481 and 1482.¹

By the 1490s, his style became more personal and mannered, moving away from the High Renaissance style of Leonardo da Vinci toward a more 'archaic' or Gothic direction.¹

His reputation suffered until the late 19th century when the Pre-Raphaelites rediscovered his work, leading to his modern status as a master of the Italian Renaissance.¹