Giovanni da Milano was an Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 painter

Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...

, known to be active in Florence and Rome between 1346 and 1369.

His style is, like many Florentine painters of the time, considered to be derivative of Giotto

Giotto di Bondone

Giotto di Bondone , better known simply as Giotto, was an Italian painter and architect from Florence in the late Middle Ages...

's. Vasari misidentified him as a student of Taddeo Gaddi

Taddeo Gaddi

Taddeo Gaddi was a medieval Italian painter and architect.-Biography:He was the son of Gaddo di Zanobi, called Gaddo Gaddi. He was a member of Giotto's workshop from 1313 to 1337, when his master died...

, a noted Giotto protégé.http://groveart.com

Hailing from Lombardy

Lombardy

Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...

, the earliest documentation shows Giovanni in Florence on October 17, 1346, under the name Johannes Jacobi de Commo, listed amongst the foreign painters living in Tuscany.http://www.wga.hu/bio/g/giovanni/milano/biograph.html

Amongst Giovanni's most significant works:

• A polyptych with Madonna and Saints (c. 1355), the oldest known signed work by Giovanni da Milano, painted for the Prato
  Prato
  Prato is a city and comune in Tuscany, Italy, the capital of the Province of Prato. The city is situated at the foot of Monte Retaia , the last peak in the Calvana chain. The lowest altitude in the comune is 32 m, near the Cascine di Tavola, and the highest is the peak of Monte Cantagrillo...
  
   Spedale della Misericordia
• A polyptych made for the Ognissanti
  Church of Ognissanti, Florence
  The Chiesa di Ognissanti is a Franciscan church in Florence, Italy. Founded by the lay order of the Umiliati, the church was dedicated to all the saints and martyrs, known and unknown....
  
   of Florence (c. 1363), now dismembered and scattered, depicting saints and scenes of the biblical
  Bible
  The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
  
   creation myth
• Man of Sorrows panel (c. 1365, Accademia, Florence
  Florence
  Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
  
  ), the oldest known signed and dated work
• Frescoes decorating both sides of the Rinuccini Chapel in Santa Croce
  Basilica di Santa Croce di Firenze
  The Basilica di Santa Croce is the principal Franciscan church in Florence, Italy, and a minor basilica of the Roman Catholic Church. It is situated on the Piazza di Santa Croce, about 800 metres south east of the Duomo. The site, when first chosen, was in marshland outside the city walls...
  
  , Florence
  Florence
  Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
  
  . Each side consists of five scenes - one side depicting the Life of the Virgin
  Mary (mother of Jesus)
  Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
  
   and the other the Life of Mary Magdalene
  Mary Magdalene
  Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
  
  . Giovanni is credited with the upper two registers of each cycle. The bottom register is credited to Matteo di Pacino.http://www.groveart.com

The latest extent documentation of Giovanni's career comes in 1369, when he is known to be working in Rome for Pope Urban V

Pope Urban V

Pope Urban V , born Guillaume Grimoard, was Pope from 1362 to 1370.-Biography:Grimoard was a native of Grizac in Languedoc . He became a Benedictine and a doctor in Canon Law, teaching at Montpellier and Avignon...

 with Giottino

Giottino

Giottino was an early Italian painter from Florence. His real name was Maso di Stefano or Tommaso di Stefano....

and the sons of Taddeo Gaddi.

External links

• Giovanni da Milano at Panopticon Virtual Art Gallery