Sandro (Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi) Botticelli was born in Florence and was initially taught the respected art of goldsmithing by his older brother. During his teenage years, his talents as a painter became apparent and eventually his early works were noticed by some of the then-current masters. He was apprenticed by art Maestro Fra Filippo Lippi, and Lippi’s ‘sweet and happy’ influence can be seen in many of Botticelli’s works.

Sandro maintained an art studio (workshop) in Florence in which his customers would either purchase his ‘on the shelf’ items (one of the more popular items were his paintings of the Madonna & Child on wooden panels), or they would order custom paintings directly from Sandro himself.

Botticelli was well-known for the clarity of vision in his paintings. He loved to paint what he saw in real life and from nature, from Greek legends and from his own imagination. Often the people in his paintings held expressions of sweetness, happiness and joy, a direct line back to the influence of his teacher Filippo Lippi.