Sandro Botticelli

A maestro of painting

Sandro Botticelli is undoubtedly one of the major painters of the Italian Renaissance. Although his style was inspired by ancient canons, the Italian artist did not hesitate to use bold compositions and angles. Close to the powerhouses of his time, Botticelli was able to count on the protection and patronage of the Medici family throughout his career. It was for them that he created one of the most famous paintings in the history of art in 1486, the Birth of Venus, the paroxysm of the female ideal according to the artist. In addition to his religious portraits and paintings, Sandro Botticelli left behind a remarkable catalogue of drawings, including those designed to illustrate Dante's Divine Comedy.

Venus and the Three Graces Presenting Gifts to a Young Woman

A major painter of the Italian Renaissance, Sandro Botticelli has many masterpieces among his oeuvre. Among them, his portraits of the Medici family, his frescoes in the Sistine chapel or Venus and the Three Graces Presenting Gifts to a Young Woman. Produced by the painter in the last quarter of the 15th century, it depicts the goddess Venus, followed by the three Graces. The unknown young woman could be Giovanna degli Albizzi, a woman of the Florentine high bourgeoisie who Botticelli often portrayed in religious frescoes. Some experts have argued the case for two other women, but the Albizzi theory is the most recognised to date. Painted on the walls of the Villa Lemmi in Florence, this fresco entered the Department of Paintings of the Musée du Louvre in 1882.

Did you know ?

Sandro Botticelli is said to have opened a restaurant with Leonardo da Vinci "The Three Frogs" by Sandro and Leonardo, a culinary failure.