active in the second and third quarter of the 13th century · Arezzo and Tuscany

Powerful outlines, luminous gold and Byzantine frontality make Margaritone d'Arezzo one of the first Italian painters known by their signature.

Margarito di Magnano, called Margaritone d'Arezzo by Giorgio Vasari, was active in Tuscany in the second and third quarters of the 13th century. A document from 1262 clearly designates him as a painter, and several panels bear his signature, a fact still remarkable in the Italy of his time. Vasari also attributed to him an activity as a sculptor and architect, but no solid evidence confirms these assertions. Margaritone also worked as a sculptor and architect, but no solid evidence confirms these assertions. Margaritone also worked before the great renewal of Cimabue and Giotto. His Virgins in majesty combine Byzantine and Romanesque models: frontal figures, black contours, bright colors, gold backgrounds and symbolic gestures. The Virgin and Child in majesty combines Byzantine and Romanesque models: frontal figures, black contours, bright colors, gold background and symbolic gestures. The Virgin and Child in majesty with narrative scenes, probably made around 1263 -1264, places Mary and Christ in a central mandorla surrounded by episodes of saints. The image does not imitate natural space; it organizes an immediately readable spiritual hierarchy. His representations of Saint Francis are also among the early testimonies of Franciscan iconography. Long considered archaic from an overly linear vision of the Renaissance, Margaritone is today understood as an artist conscious of his language, capable of combining graphic force, story and authorial identity. The selection "Margaritone d'Arezzo" notably compares The Virgin and Child in majesty, with narrative scenes and The Virgin and the Child. His reading favors atmosphere.

Margaritone's signature affirms what gold and line already proclaim: behind the sacred image stands a painter conscious of his profession.