Biography on Andrea del Verrocchio - Essay Example

However he won a place among the most competent and well known and excellent artists that seemed to be accepted and known as to be masters on their fields of works. He was young when he studied science and geometry. Be a goldsmith on his early years, he mastered the field over other older goldsmiths. In San Maria del Fiore at Florence, he worked for a cup which was very well-known to all goldsmiths. The cup’s body was designed by abstract shapes, and images of leaves and animals. In 1477, Verrocchio was known to all through his merits and reputation.

He was then employed to work for the altar of S. Giovanni. He was asked by the art of merchants to do silver works for the altar. Thereafter, he acquired much appreciation and reputation. Meanwhile, at Rome, the Pope’s chapel’s silverworks were destroyed and they do not have yet those large apostles on around the altar of the chapel until Verrocchio was sent for them by Pope Sixtus to work on the silverworks for the Pope’s chapel. Verrocchio was an excellent goldsmith and he has done several well-known silverworks that were used by influential people on his time.

However, Verrocchio decided to leave his being a goldsmith to try sculpture when he saw ancient statues that were sculptured excellently at Rome. One of such was place by the Pope at Lateran, the famous bronze horse. Accordingly, he abandoned his being a goldsmith. He left his silverworks and then he took up sculpture and began by carving little bronze figures and began casting little bronze figures. His trial being a sculpture immerged to excellence when his bronze-works were admired by fellow sculptures and several people in Rome.

Verrocchio was encouraged by this; he then decided to work figures out of marble. His very first work using marble was done for a sarcophagus of a rich man’s wife. The rich man found the tomb excellent and considerable; the rich man was then encouraged by influential people to place his wife’s tomb in the open space of Minerva. Upon his return to Florence, he brought with him his earned money, fame and honor. He was inspired by the admiration and much appreciation by the people for his works.

Thereafter, he did some marble-works for Madonna in S. Croce. It was then placed above the tomb of M. Leonardo Bruni' of Arezzo. Verrocchio also did metal replicas of the heads of Alexander the Great and of King Darius. The heads were like a fancy head whose character was emphasized though crests and armor design. The metal heads, admired by Lorenzo de' Medici, was later sent to the king of Hungary, Matthias Corvinus. Verrocchio, having earned a reputation and much admiration as an excellent master on different fields, made the tomb of Giovanni and Piero di Cosimo de' Medici in San Lorenzo.

As years passed, Verrocchio realized that he could not be higher than what he has in his sculptures and his previous works; though he was admired, his thirst for much appreciation and reputation prevails. He was thinking that he has not excelled because of some comparisons among the accepted masters and other rivalries among his fellow sculptures. By this, he turned his time and eager attention to painting. To start with his painting, Verrocchio did some sketches of a battle of nude figures which he later plans to do in a wall but with colors.

He also made some cartoon characters, and made some pictures as model. At Venice, Verrocchio made