Duccio

Duccio di Buoninsegna, usually known simply as Duccio, was an Italian painter who helped inaugurate the Sienese School in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. Working mainly in Siena, his refined style blended Byzantine formal elegance with early naturalism and spatial awareness, making him one of the most important painters before the Renaissance.

Born in Siena circa 1255, Duccio ran a workshop that produced altarpieces for churches across the city and region. His best-known work is the Maestà, a large altarpiece for the Siena Cathedral completed around 1311. The central panel shows the Virgin and Child enthroned among saints on a gold ground, executed with graceful lines and delicate modeling. The Maestà is now dispersed, with the central panel in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo in Siena and other panels in various collections.

Another major work is the Rucellai Madonna (c. 1285–1288), painted for the church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence and now in the Uffizi Gallery. This painting illustrates Duccio's careful anatomy, expressive faces, and integrated landscape, hallmarks of his mature style. His workshop produced numerous panels and predellas that circulated widely in Tuscany, helping to disseminate his blend of sacred iconography and decorative finesse.

Duccio's influence extended through his pupils, notably Simone Martini, who adapted his refined line and luminous color to new fashions. His career marks a turning point in Italian painting, bridging medieval Byzantine tradition and the emergence of naturalism that would flourish in the quattrocento. He is believed to have died in Siena about 1319.