OGGIONO, Marco d’ - b. ~1467 Milano, d. 1524 Milano - WGA

OGGIONO, Marco d’

(b. ~1467 Milano, d. 1524 Milano)

Italian painter. He is first documented in Milan in a contract of apprenticeship of 1487, when he undertook to teach Protasio Crivelli (d. after 1516) the art of painting miniatures; Marco must by that time have been a qualified master with a shop of his own. During the early 1490s he was in some way associated with Leonardo da Vinci: in September 1490 Leonardo’s assistant Salai stole a valuable silverpoint pencil from Marco, who was then staying in the Florentine’s house. In 1491 d’Oggiono and Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio were commissioned by the brothers of the late Archbishop Leonardo Griffi to paint an altarpiece for the newly constructed chapel of S Leonardo, attached to S Giovanni sul Muro, Milan; only the centrepiece of the work, a Resurrection with SS Leonardo and Lucy (Berlin, Staatliche Museen), survives. The Griffi Altarpiece was not finished until 1494. He is documented in Venice 1497-98 and in Savona 1501-02.

Although d’Oggiono did not gain much recognition as an innovator, as a pupil he skillfully learned his master’s style and produced a number of faithful copies including that of the Last Supper. He tended towards exaggerated gestures in his more independent works.

Resurrection of Christ with Sts Leonardo and Lucy
Resurrection of Christ with Sts Leonardo and Lucy by

Resurrection of Christ with Sts Leonardo and Lucy

In 1491 an altarpiece was commissioned by the brothers of the late Archbishop Leonardo Griffi for the newly constructed chapel of S Leonardo, attached to S Giovanni sul Muro, Milan. The Resurrection was the central panel of this altarpiece. It is assumed that Leonardo da Vinci provided a refined drawing for the composition. The figures of the two saints were painted by Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio.

Suggested listening (streaming mp3, 3 minutes):

Guillaume Dufay: Hymn for Easter

The Holy Family
The Holy Family by

The Holy Family

The reverse of the panel is painted with grotesques and satyrs en brunaille.

Suggested listening (streaming mp3, 9 minutes):

Josquin Desprez: Motet (In principio erat verbum)

The Three Archangels
The Three Archangels by

The Three Archangels

This large altarpiece was executed for the church of Santa Marta in Milan. Marco d’Oggiono followed faithfully the style of his master, Leonardo.

Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints
Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints by

Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints

This painting is one of the last works of the painter who presumably died of the plague in 1524. It came from the church of San Michele Arcangelo in Besate, near Milan. The composition of the scene, based on a clear, pyramidal structure, derives from Leonardo’s models. The represented saints are Jerome, Bernardino of Siena, and John Capistran.

Virgin and Child before a Landscape
Virgin and Child before a Landscape by

Virgin and Child before a Landscape

Marco d’Oggiono, one of Leonardo da Vinci’s most accomplished followers. In the present painting the aerial perspective, the physiognomies, the overall design, and the sfumato effect are all echoes of Leonardo’s work.

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