Neri di Bicci

Neri di Bicci was born in 1419 in Florence. His father, Bicci di Lorenzo, was a painter and owned a workshop in Florence. Di Bicci inherited his father’s business, as well as his artistic talents. His earliest signed work dates from 1452, but he most likely was creating works at least a decade before then. His contemporaries, including the Renaissance masters Fra Filippo Lippi and Fra Angelico, likely had a great influence on the art he produced.

Di Bicci kept a written account of the inner workings of his workshop between 1453 and 1475. This record is extremely significant to our modern understanding of the production of paintings during the 15th century. This detailed document reveals that he produced an average of three altarpieces a year, and had no fewer than nineteen assistants working for him.

His last signed and dated painting is an altarpiece in Siena from 1484; however, it is likely that he continued to work after that. Scholars have surmised that he died in 1491, as no traces or records of him exist past that point.