GIOVANNI DI PIAMONTE

Italian painter. The date and place of his birth are not known, but his name indicates that he was born in Piamonte near present Pontassieve in Tuscany.

His first known painting is an altarpiece of the Madonna Enthroned and Saints in 1456 (Santa Maria delle Grazie, Città di Castello). It shows the influence of Piero della Francesca. A dated work of 1471, Sant’Anna Metterza (Staatliche Museen, Berlin), attributed to Giovanni di Piamonte, reveals a detailed knowledge of Piero’s work with its mastery of perspective.

He was the main assistant to Piero della Francesca when he and his workshop painted the fresco cycle of the Legend of the True Cross in the Cappella Maggiore of the church San Francesco, Arezzo. Another fresco by him is located in a chapel of the church of San Pancrazio in Florence.

He was active in Arezzo and Umbria. Although he was trained in the circle of Piero della Francesca, later he was influenced by Masaccio and Andrea del Castagno.