Born:
July 30, 1511; Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy
Died:
June 27, 1574; Florence, Italy
Nationality:
Italian
Art Movement:
Renaissance, Mannerism (Late Renaissance)
Field:
painting, architecture
Influenced by:
Guglielmo da Marsiglia, Michelangelo, Raphael
Influenced on:
Sebastiano Flori, Bartolomeo Carducci, Mirabello Cavalori, Stefano Veltroni,
Alessandro Fortori
Giorgio Vasari was an Italian painter, architect, writer, and historian, born on July 30, 1511 and died on June 27, 1574.
As a historian, he is most famous for his
book "Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and
Architects", which is evaluated as the ideological foundation of
art-historical literature. He was also the first to use the term
"Renaissance" in his book.
 |
| Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects |
Vasari was born in Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy. As a child, he became a pupil of Guglielmo da Marsiglia, a skillful stained glass painter, recommended by his cousin Luca Signorelli.
 |
| Testament and Death of Moses, Luca Signorelli and Bartolomeo della Gatta (c.1482) |
At the age of 16, he was sent to Florence by Cardinal Silvio Passerini, and joined the circle of Andrea del Sarto and his pupils Rosso Fiorentino and Jacopo Pontormo.
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| Madonna of the Harpies, Andrea del Sarto (1517) |
 |
| Marriage of the Virgin, Rosso Fiorentino (1523) |
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| Joseph in Egypt, Jacopo Pontormo (1515-1518) |
In 1529, he visited Rome where he studied the works of Raphael and other artists of the Roman High Renaissance.
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| Sistine Madonna, Raphael (1512) |
In 1547, he completed frescoes in the hall of the Palazzo della Cancelleria in Rome. He was continuously employed by members of the Medici family in Florence and Rome, and worked in places, including Naples and Arezzo.
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| Palazzo della Cancelleria |
Many of his paintings still exist, and his works in the Sala
di Cosimo in the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence are the most important of his wall
and ceiling paintings. In Rome, he also painted frescoes in the Sala Regia in
Vatican.
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| Ceiling decoration, Giorgio Vasari, Palazzo Vecchio, Florence (1556-58) |
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| Pope Gregory XI returns to Rome from Avignon, Giorgio Vasari, Sala Regia (Vatican) (1572-73) |
Vasari has earned a high reputation throughout his life and made a considerable fortune. In 1547, he built his own house in Arezzo, now a museum in honor of him, and decorated its walls and vaults with paintings.
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| Vasari House Museum, Arezzo |
He was also elected to
the municipal council of his native town and finally rose to gonfaloniere, and
the Pope awarded him Knight of the Golden Spur. He married Niccolosa Bacci, who
was a member of one of Arezzo's richest and most prominent families.
 |
| Giorgio Vasari with his wife Niccolosa Bacci, Giorgio Vasari (c.1565) |
In
1563, he helped establish the Florentine Accademia e Compagnia delle Arti del
Disegno, where Grand Duke and Michelangelo were selected as representatives of
the institution, and 36 artists were selected as members of the institution.
 |
| Accademia delle Arti del Disegno, Florence |
Famous Woks
Thank
you.
