Cima da Conegliano, Giovanni Battista Cima – Conegliano 1459ca – 1517ca

Giovanni Battista Cima takes his name from the town of Conegliano, in the province of Treviso, where he was born and died. Unfortunately, there is lack of information about his formation. Nevertheless, the first works, such as the “Madonna and Child with Saints James the Greater and Jerome” (1489) in the Museum of Vicenza, are very up-to-date on the Venetian artistic innovations. These are works that reveal contacts with Bartolomeo Montegna, Giovanni Bellini, Alvise Vivarini and Antonello da Messina.

Cima da Conegliano in Venice

Cima spent most of his career in Venice, where he remained until 1516 and from where he also painted works for the Venetian mainland. The compositional schemes of his altarpieces, although sometimes repetitive, meet the consensus of many customers. This is due to the large, bright settings and sensitivity for landscape backgrounds.

Some representative works are the “Madonna of the Orange Tree” (Venice, Gallerie dell’Accademia), the “Altarpiece of St John Baptist with Saints Peter, Mark, Jerome, and Paul” (Venice, Madonna dell’Orto), the “Baptism of Christ” (Venice, San Giovanni in Bragora), the “Saint Peter Martyr with Saints Nicholas and Benedict” (Milan Pinacoteca di Brera).

The paintings in the theme of the Madonna with the Child were also in great demand.

Some of Cima da Conegliano’s works