Sandro Botticelli

1445 - 1510

Botticelli's real name was Sandro Filipepi. Botticelli, which means "little barrels," was a nickname given to his rotund older brother that later spread to the whole family. Botticelli's father, a lowly tanner, worked hard to give his children a better chance in life. Young Sandro joined the workshop of Fra Filippo Lippi, a famous painter who had scandalized Florence by leaving his life as a monk to marry a former nun. Later, Botticelli was drawn to the teaching of Savonarola, a monk who accused Florentines of living immorally and exhorted them to burn their books, paintings and other luxuries in what he called a "bonfire of the vanities." Botticelli may have thought his own paintings were not pious enough. First his art became more religious, then he gave it up altogether, and lived out his last years in a monastery.