Pietro Perugino: Master of the Italian Renaissance.

An Umbrian painter, student of Piero della Francesco (with fellow student Leonardo), master of a great Florentine workshop, supervisor of the Sistine Chapel wall paintings of Botticelli, Ghirlandiao, Signorelli, and others (before Michelangelo), teacher of Raphael, and inspiration of the Pre-Raphaelites, Perugino?born Pietro di Cristoforo Vannucci (1450-1523)?has had a one-man show in Grand Rapids, MI, after 500 years. This is also the first exhibit of his work outside Italy in 50 years. Nine Italian and American scholars have contributed brief, informative essays to this book. The core, however, is a catalog of the 35 works of art exhibited, including nine paintings shipped from the National Gallery of Umbria, Perugia, sister city of Grand Rapids, and 26 borrowed from museums in the United States. This stunning, beautifully rendered monograph provides a modern reappraisal of Perugino's entire career; one has to reach all the way back to 1933 (R. Van Marle, The Development of the Italian School of Painting, Vol. 14) for as complete a treatment of Perugino in English. An annotated chronology reflects the latest scholarship. Essential for anyone with an interest in Renaissance art.?Ellen Bates, New York
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