Fra Angelico

**Fra Angelico** (born **Guido di Pietro**;  – February 18, 1455), was an Italian Early Renaissance painter. Giorgio Vasari, who wrote the *Lives of the Artists* said he had "*a rare and perfect talent*".

Fra Angelico has been known by many different names. When he was born, he was called **Guido di Pietro**. People who knew him when he was older called him **Fra Giovanni da Fiesole** (Brother John from Fiesole). When Giorgio Vasari wrote about him in *Lives of the Artists*, in the 1500s, he was already known as **Fra Giovanni Angelico** (Brother Giovanni who is like an Angel).

The Italians usually call him **il Beato Angelico** (the Blessed Angelico). He has been called this for a long time, because he was thought to be blessed by God who gave him the talent of painting, and also because he was such a good and holy man. The name "Blessed Angelico" has now been made official, because in 1982 Pope John Paul II "conferred beatification" which means that he is now on the way to being made a saint.

Vasari says about him: "*It is impossible to think of enough good things to say about this holy father, who was so humble and modest in everything that he did and said, and whose pictures were painted with such cleverness and holy faith.*" Nothing is known about his parents. He was baptized Guido or Guidolino.

In 1407, he joined the Dominican Order at Fiesole. Like the other "brothers" (friars) of the Dominican Order, he wore a white robe and a black cloak, and shaved part of his head.

Fra Angelico had a brother called Benedetto who was also a Dominican friar. Fra Benedetto painted illuminated manuscripts. Fra Angelico possibly learnt to paint manuscripts as well. The convent of San Marco in Florence has several manuscript books that he is thought to have painted. He was very busy with other work at the convents where he lived, but he still found time to paint pictures, which very soon became famous. In January and February 1418, he was paid for paintings that he did in the church of Santo Stefano del Ponte.

Between 1418 and 1436, Fra Angelico painted an altarpiece for the church in Fiesole, which has been damaged. Age caused the some of the paint to come off, or fade, and other artists have painted over some of Fra Angelico's work while trying to repair the paintings. The top part of the altarpiece is in the National Gallery, London. It shows Christ in Glory, surrounded by more than 250 figures, and is a large and magnificent piece of work. It has been described as one of the best works in the gallery.  Cosimo took the largest of the friars' rooms, called cells,  at the convent so that he could have a quiet place for religious thought. Fra Angelico painted a picture showing the Magi at Bethlehem on the wall of Cosimo's cell.

### The Vatican, 1445–1455 
In 1445, Pope Eugenius IV sent a message for Fra Angelico to come to Rome to paint the frescoes of the Chapel of the Holy Sacrament at St Peter's. The chapel was later demolished by Pope Paul III to make way for the new St.Peter's Basilica and Fra Angelico's work was lost. Vasari says that one of the popes (it might have been Eugenius or Pope Nichoas V) asked Fra Angelico if he would like the very important job of Archbishop of Florence. But Fra Angelico did not want such a high job and he suggested the name of another friar for the position. In 1447 Fra Angelico went to the city of Orvieto with his pupil, Benozzo Gozzoli, to paint some pictures for the Cathedral there . One of his other pupils was called Zanobi Strozzi, but he did not become as famous as Benozzo.

From 1447 to 1449, Fra Angelico was back at the Vatican, where Pope Nicholas V had built a small chapel where he could pray privately. The pictures that Fra Angelico and his pupils painted there are the lives of two young saints St. Stephen and St. Lawrence, who were both "martyrs" (they were killed because of their Christian faith). The small chapel, with its bright colours and gold leaf decorations is like a jewel box. From 1449 until 1452, Fra Angelico was back at his old convent of Fiesole, where he was the Prior (the head man). Fra Angelico's pupils were probably left in Rome to finish the work on the chapel. Pope John Paul II beatified Fra Angelico on October 3, 1982, making him *officially* known as the "Blessed Angelico". In 1984 the pope made him the patron of Catholic artists.

The words on his grave say:

::"When you praise me, don't say that I am a famous painter.
::Instead, say that for love of Jesus, I gave everything that I had to the poor.
::The things that seem to be important on Earth are not the things that are important in Heaven.
::I am Brother John, from Florence, the flower of Tuscany.

Fra Angelico was able to paint in both ways. If the Pope or a rich family wanted an altarpiece or a fresco that had gold and expensive bright colours, then Fra Angelico could do it. But his most famous paintings have no gold and no bright colours. They are the simple gentle paintings of the life of Jesus that he did for the friars in their cells at San Marcos.

## Gallery 
This gallery shows stories from the life of Jesus. The square paintings are in tempera. They are all parts of a big altarpiece and are about 25&nbsp;cm wide. The "tondo" (round painting) is a small altarpiece about 1.4 metres wide. All the paintings with arched tops are frescos and were painted for the Dominican brothers. 

Image:Fra_Angelico_006.jpg|Annunciation (c. 1450)
Image:Fra_Angelico_002.jpg|The Naming of St. John the Baptist (1434 – 1435)
Image:Adorazione del Bambino - Beato Angelico.jpg|The Nativity
Image:Fra Angelico 013.jpg|The Adoration of the Magi, *the Cook Tondo*.
Image:Fra Angelico - Flight into Egypt, 1450.jpg|The Flight into Egypt (c.1450)
Image:Fra_Angelico_040.jpg|Baptism of Christ (c.1437 – 1446)
Image:Fra Angelico 042 adjusted.jpg|*The Transfiguration*
Image:Fra Angelico 020.jpg|Capture of Christ (c.1437 – 1446)
Image:Fra_Angelico_025.jpg|Christ Being Nailed to the Cross (c.1437 – 1446)
Image:Fra_Angelico_026.jpg|Christ on the Cross between the Two Thieves (c.1437 – 1446)
Image:Fra Angelico 021.jpg|The Deposition (c.1437 – 1446)
Image:Fra_Angelico_039.jpg|Mary Magdalene sees the risen Christ (c.1437 – 1446)

## Related pages 
* Renaissance
* Italian Renaissance art
* Duccio
* Masaccio
* Uccello
* List of Italian painters

## References 
## Bibliography 

* Rossetti, William Michael. Angelico, Fra. *1911 Encyclopædia Britannica*.
* Hood, William. *Fra Angelico at San Marco*. Yale University Press, 1993.
* Morachiello, Paolo. *Fra Angelico: The San Marco Frescoes*. Thames and Hudson, 1990. 
* Frederick Hartt, *A History of Italian Renaissance Art*, Thames & Hudson, 1970. 
* Giorgio Vasari. *Lives of the Artists*. first published 1568. Penguin Classics, 1965.
* Donald Attwater. *The Penguin Dictionary of Saints*. Penguin Reference Books, 1965.
* Luciano Berti. *Florence, the city and its Art.* Bercocci, 1979.
* Stefano Orlandi. *Beato Angelico; Monographia Storica della Vita e delle Opere con Un’Appendice di Nuovi Documenti Inediti.* Florence: Leo S. Olschki Editore, 1964.

## Other websites 
* 
*
* 
*
*{{Cite web
 |url= http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId={9EA9FDD7-13DF-45D7-B7A0-313276A5996C}&HomePageLink=special_c2a |title=Fra Angelico  Past Exhibitions  The Metropolitan Museum of Art |work=metmuseum.org |access-date=21 October 2010}}, (October 26, 2005 – January 29, 2006).
*