Published:
April 9, 2021 at 7:05 am
Artists today generally paint what they wish to paint, hoping to make a living by selling their work at exhibitions or through dealers. But early in the Italian Renaissance, painters were regarded still as craftsmen rather than artists. They were ruled by the conventions of their workshops, and for any major painting commission they were at the behest of a client or patron. The patron might sometimes be benign, allowing their painter some independence, but often they were considerably more demanding. Contracts usually outlined in detail exactly what the painter was to show in his work, and imposed clear conditions on the quality of materials to be used, the delivery date and how much the painter would be paid.