Oil Paint
Oil paint is a slow-drying art medium made with pigment and a drying-oil binder that allows extended working time, smooth blending, and layered application.
Painter
Rosso Fiorentino
Rosso Fiorentino was an early Italian Mannerist painter whose angular figures, expressive brushwork, and striking colors challenged High Renaissance balance.
Rosso Fiorentino quick facts
Rosso trained alongside Pontormo in Andrea del Sarto's circle. His tense, experimental Italian paintings helped establish early Mannerism; he later worked at the French court in Fontainebleau.
| Born | 1494 or 1495 · Florence, Republic of Florence (now Italy) |
|---|---|
| Died | 1540 · Fontainebleau, France |
| Nationality | Italian (Florentine) |
| Movements | Early Mannerism; First School of Fontainebleau (later career) |
| Paint types | Oil Paint |
| Painting surfaces | Wood · Canvas |
| Painting methods | Boldly visible strokes, fractured or angled human forms, intense contrasts, ambitious altar compositions, and later court decoration at Fontainebleau |
| Common subjects | Unsettling religious scenes, musicians, dramatic Biblical stories, humanist portraits, and Fontainebleau decorative imagery |
| Notable works | Moses Defends the Daughters of Jethro · Enthroned Madonna and Child with Four Saints · A Knight of Saint John · Portrait of a Young Man holding a Letter |
Sources: Uffizi: Moses Defends the Daughters of Jethro, oil on canvas, Uffizi: Enthroned Madonna and Child with four saints, oil on panel, National Gallery: A Knight of Saint John, oil on wood, National Gallery: Portrait of a Young Man holding a Letter, oil on wood.
Paint types used
The Uffizi catalogs Moses Defends the Daughters of Jethro as oil on canvas and Enthroned Madonna and Child with Four Saints as oil on panel. His portraits at London's National Gallery use oil on wood.
Surface types used
Rosso used canvas for the dramatic Moses Defends the Daughters of Jethro and wood for documented early Florentine portraits and altarpieces; the support depends on the individual work.
Wood
Wood is a natural, porous material with grain patterns and absorbency that vary by species and cut. Its surface may also contain knots, resin, or an existing finish.
Canvas
Canvas is a woven fabric support, commonly cotton or linen, used for painting and sold either raw or prepared with a compatible ground layer.
Painters similar to Rosso Fiorentino
Pontormo was Rosso's near-contemporary in Florence, while Parmigianino explored another region's elegant but unconventional Mannerist vocabulary.
Pontormo
Pontormo was a Florentine Mannerist painter known for emotionally charged religious subjects, unconventional spaces, and intense, sometimes startling color.
Parmigianino
Parmigianino was an Italian Mannerist painter whose elongated figures, elegant gestures, and unusual perspectives helped define the movement's refined artificiality.