Pisano, Andrea (c. 1295–1348)

Andrea di Ugolino di Nino, commonly called Andrea Pisano, was an Italian goldsmith, sculptor, and capomaestro, or master of works, of the cathedrals of Florence and Orvieto. Born in Pontedera, the son of a Pisan notary, Andrea ranks as one of the outstanding sculptors of the fourteenth century anywhere in Europe. His reputation rests principally upon the creation of the earliest set of bronze doors for the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Florence for the powerful merchants' guild, the Calimala. Signed and dated 1330, the portal is an impressive public monument which counts among the greatest achievements of late Medieval Italian art. In this project, Andrea demonstrated that the direct narrative style and inventive compositional devices of contemporary fresco painting, notably Giotto's, could be successfully translated into the art of relief sculpture. The doors remained a benchmark for artistic excellence into the fifteenth century: when the Calimala announced a competition in 1400-01, the aim was to attract a craftsman who could produce a second set of bronze doors that would follow Andrea's model and maintain his high standards.