A painter and architect in his own right, Giorgio Vasari (1511-74)
achieved immortality for this book on the lives of his fellow
Renaissance artists, first published in Florence in 1550. Although he
based his work on a long tradition of biographical writing, Vasari
infused these literary portraits with a decidedly modern form of
critical judgment. The result is a work that remains to this day the
cornerstone of art historical scholarship.
Spanning the period from the thirteenth century to Vasari's own time,
the Lives opens a window on the greatest personalities of the period,
including Giotto, Brunelleschi, Mantegna, Leonardo, Raphael,
Michelangelo, and Titian. This Modern Library edition, abridged from the
original text with notes drawn from earlier commentaries, as well as
current research, reminds us why The Lives of the Most Excellent
Painters, Sculptors, and Architects is indispensable to any student
interested in Renaissance art.