Perugino


 * Life**

Pietro Perugino (1450-1523) was an Italian Renaissance painter. He is one of the first Italian Renaissance painters to experiment with oil paints, and he was also involved in the development of linear perspective. He was a key painter in using art to establish Papal authority and mentor to other famous artists such as Raphael.

Perugino started out his painting career as an apprentice to several masters, including Leonardo da Vinci and Fiorenzo di Lorenzo. Growing from their influence, Perugino developed his own style through the Umbrian School. This school of thought is seen by his use and development of perspective as well as the geometric basis found in many of his paintings. Also he used light and colour to help model characters in his artworks.


 * Art**

Perugino created several artworks, mainly frescos to churches and chapels, but he is most known for his work //Christ Delivering the Keys to St. Peter//. This artwork was commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV as part of the decoration inside the Sistine Chapel in Rome. The painting, as insinuated in the title, portrays Christ giving St. Peter a set of keys, supposedly those to the Kingdom of Heaven, or possibly also those to the Sistine Chapel.



//Christ Delivering the Keys to St. Peter//

This fresco is not only a decoration for the Sistine Chapel, it is also an experiment in one point linear perspective. Perugino is able to create the desired effect, however he does rely heavily on simple designs (the floor and background) as well as symmetry to help simplify the drawing process. Also the vanishing point is centrally placed, meaning that the figures in the painting were easier to draw since they avoided extreme angle. Although the overall idea is simple, this artwork paved the way for later use of one point linear perspective. Several of the figures surrounding Jesus are portraits of contemporaries, possibly patrons of the work. Perugino is also said to have included his own portrait in the work, him being the fifth from the right edge.

His other artworks include multiple frescoes for monasteries and guild halls. Notable are //The Adoration of the Magi//, and earlier work, and //The Baptism of Christ//. In Perugino's later years, his student Raphael began to be offered contracts which would have previously been given to Perugino. This can either be seen as a slow outgoing of his artistic style, or as a celebration of his success as a teacher.

References:

Ahser, Cothren, Stokstad. "Art History." Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall. 2010.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 23 April 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perugino.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 4 April 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Delivery_of_the_Keys_%28Perugino%29