Vittore Crivelli
1440–1501 · Italian Early Renaissance painter, brother of Carlo Crivelli
Vittore Crivelli (Venice, c. 1440-1449 – Fermo, 1501) was an Italian painter of the early Renaissance and the brother of Carlo Crivelli. Born into a family of painters, he began his career as an assistant to his brother, and the two moved to Zara (now Zadar) in 1465. There Vittore started an independent career that continued for many years in Dalmatia.
In 1481 he settled in Fermo, in the Marche, where he is recorded as a resident in 1489 and where he probably lived and worked comfortably until his death. His notable works include the Enthroned Virgin and Child with Saints (1481, Vatican Picture Gallery, Rome) and a polyptych of 1481 now in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
His style clearly derives from that of Carlo, whose figure types he reproduces with more sweetness than force. His development was minimal, which makes it hard to tell his early works from his late ones. The payments he received were almost equal to those his brother got for similar commissions, suggesting he was well regarded by his contemporaries. His son Giacomo was also a painter, though of lesser standing, and no work by him survives.
Works (3)
Painted by Vittorio Crivelli in 1481, this religious work shows the Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child, accompanied by four saints. The available record offers no further information about its commission, composition or technique, so any reading of the scene should remain cautious and focus on how the figures are arranged.
Vittorio Crivelli painted this enthroned Virgin and Child in 1481, surrounded by angels and saints. Flanking the Virgin are John the Baptist, Francis of Assisi, Bonaventure and Louis of Toulouse, figures identifiable through their customary attributes. The devotional scene follows a symmetrical, orderly arrangement that makes each figure easy to read. For a fuller account of the work, its catalogue record is the best place to look.
This work belongs to the sacra conversazione type, in which holy figures are gathered within a single shared space rather than shown in separate scenes. Vittore Crivelli painted it as a polyptych, an altarpiece made of several panels. It is now held at the Pinacoteca civica Tacchi-Venturi.
Where to see the work
- Pinacoteca Vaticana Vatican City · 1
- Philadelphia Museum of Art Philadelphia County · 1
- Pinacoteca civica Tacchi-Venturi San Severino Marche · 1
Teachers and pupils
Studied with
- Carlo Crivelli 1430–1490