Francesco Francia

Francesco Francia was a Renaissance painter from Northern Italy, known for his biblical portraits. As a Northern Italian, Francia had the privilege of exposure to Northern Renaissance paintings, resulting in an entirely Italian figure rendering (based off of Greco-Roman ideals) married with a Netherlandish color sensibility resulting in vibrant, bold paintings. Like many Renaissance painters, Francia emphasized the naturalism of his work by painting his figures slightly out of frame (and often interacting with a false one), creating a sense that the biblical Saint in his work is really entering the space and world of the viewer.