Verrocchio

Verrocchio, born Andrea di Michele di Cione (c. 1435–1488), is the name by which the Italian artist is best known. He was a sculptor, painter, and teacher whose career was centered in Florence during the early Renaissance. The nickname Verrocchio, meaning “the ironworker,” is traditionally linked to his family’s workshop and trade. He later worked in Venice, where he died.

In Florence, Verrocchio ran a prolific workshop that trained many artists and carried out commissions for the city’s principal patrons, including the Medici. He is recognized for bridging late Gothic traditions with new Renaissance ideas, and for developing a highly finished, technically accomplished approach to bronze sculpture and painting. One of his notable roles was as a mentor to Leonardo da Vinci, among other prominent artists of the period.

Verrocchio’s surviving works span sculpture and painting. His bronze David (c. 1465–1470) in the Bargello Museum is celebrated for its elegant contrapposto and refined finish. The equestrian statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni in Venice (begun in the 1480s) is often cited as his masterpiece and a landmark of bronze sculpture. In painting, The Baptism of Christ (c. 1470s) is attributed to his workshop with a notable contribution from Leonardo da Vinci, who painted the angels; Adoration of the Magi (c. 1475) is another major work associated with him, now in the Uffizi Gallery.

Verrocchio’s influence endured through his workshop’s pupils and through the stylistic transition he helped guide in Florentine art, shaping both sculpture and painting in the late 15th century.