Perugino, Pietro

(Pietro Vannucci; c. 1445-1523)

   Italian painter credited with bringing Perugia out of artistic obscurity; the teacher of Raphael. The details of Perugino's training are unknown, though it possibly took place in Florence, as indicated by the fact that in 1472 he was listed as a member of the Florentine Company of St. Luke, a fraternity of painters. In 1475, he is documented back in Perugia and in 1481 he had acquired enough of a reputation to have been called by Pope Sixtus IV to Rome to work on the wall frescoes in the Sistine Chapel. Art historians believe that Perugino may have been put in charge of directing the commission. Of the scenes he contributed, his Christ Giving the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven to St. Peter (1482) represents one of the most successful frescoes in the chapel. He also contributed an Assumption of the Virgin, destroyed when Michelangelo created his Last Judgment (1536-1541) on the altar wall. The first shows the moment when Christ commands St. Peter to establish the first Christian church in Rome and the papacy, visually verbalizing the concept of the pope's Godgiven right to rule since Peter received the appointment directly from Christ. The second, known through a drawing in the Albertina in Vienna by one of Perugino's assistants, showed Sixtus IV kneeling in front of the Virgin, his papal tiara prominently displayed at his side. Also at his side, St. Peter presented him to the Virgin, his keys touching the pontiff on the shoulder to again assert the divine nature of the papal office.

   Perugino rendered his Crucifixion (1481; Washington, National Gallery) a year earlier, a work that bears the influence of Early Netherlandish art and, in particular, that of Hans Memlinc. The pale, delicate figure types, the undulating drapery worn by Christ, and the emphasis on every minute detail emulate Memlinc's style. The scene is calm, with figures passively witnessing the event—an image that invites contemplation. One of the characteristics of Perugino's art is his use of stock figures in an exaggerated sway that he repeated over and over. His Mary Magdalen in this painting echoes the pose of St. John down to the last detail. Also characteristic of Perugino is the plunging landscape in the center background. All of these elements also form part of his Pazzi Crucifixion (1494-1496) in the Church of Santa Maria Maddalena dei Pazzi, Florence, except that here Perugino included three classical arches to separate the witnessing saints from the crucified Christ and mourning Virgin. Perugino also turned to Memlinc for inspiration when engaging in portraiture. His portrait Francesco delle Opere (1494; Florence, Uffizi), of a Florentine craftsman, utilizes a formula often found in the Northern master's art that includes an unidealized half figure with face and hands emphasized, one hand resting on a parapet, and the other holding an object—here a scroll with the Latin motto Timete Deum (Fear God).

   Among Perugino's late works are the Virgin Adoring the Child with St. Michael and Tobias and the Angel (c. 1499; London, National Gallery) commissioned for the Certosa di Pavia, the Virgin and Child at the Washington National Gallery (1501), and the Marriage of the Virgin (1500-1504; Caen, Musée des Beaux-Arts) for the Cathedral of Perugia where Mary's wedding ring is housed. In this late phase, Perugino's figures adopt a dreamy quality, achieved by softening the contours and rounding and shading the eyes with earth tones. His style in these works so influenced his pupil Raphael that it is sometimes difficult to tell their works apart. In fact, Raphael might not have achieved the visual beauty of his figures and backdrops had it not been for the lessons he learned from Perugino.