Andrea del Castagno

Overview

Andrea del Castagno is a fundamental figure in the lineage of the Florentine Last Supper tradition, providing the "masterful balance" of figure and architecture that Leonardo would later revolutionize in Milan.

His Last Supper at Sant'Apollonia (1447) was the first Renaissance refectory fresco in Florence, characterized by its "vibrant colors" and a sense of real, tangible space achieved through rigorous central perspective.

Castagno’s composition, where Judas sits alone on the near side of the table, remained the standard until Leonardo’s psychological intervention at Santa Maria delle Grazie.

Historically, Castagno’s reputation was significantly distorted by Giorgio Vasari, who characterized him as a "vile and petty" man who murdered his friend Domenico Veneziano to steal the secret of oil painting.

Modern archival research has definitively debunked this myth, as death registers confirm Veneziano lived four years longer than Castagno, who died of the plague in 1457. This legend was likely a narrative device used by Vasari to explain the "violence" and muscular tension he perceived in Castagno’s realism.

Castagno’s influence on Leonardo was contextual rather than direct, as the Sant'Apollonia fresco was cloistered and largely unknown to the public until the late 19th century.

Why It Matters

Castagno establishes the technical and psychological baseline for the Last Supper genre; correcting the Vasari murder myth is essential for a factual map of the Renaissance and for understanding how historiographic errors can overshadow genuine artistic lineage.

Timeline

• 1440: Returns to Florence; paints the "Hanged Men" on the Palazzo del Podestà.
• 1447: Paints the Last Supper at the refectory of Sant'Apollonia.
• 1448-1451: Executes the Cycle of Illustrious Men and Women for Villa Carducci.
• 1450: Likely date for the completion of the Sant'Apollonia murals.
• 1457: Death of Castagno from the plague.
• 1461: Death of Domenico Veneziano (refuting the murder myth).
• 1866: Sant'Apollonia convent suppressed; Castagno’s fresco becomes publicly known.

Key Claims

• Contradicted: Murdered Domenico Veneziano out of envy
• Supported: Painted the first Renaissance refectory in Florence
• Supported: Used Judas as a separate figure in the Last Supper
• Supported: Nicknamed "Andrea degli Impiccati"
• Supported: His Last Supper was unknown to Vasari
• Supported: Mastered human physique and central perspective
• Supported: Died of the plague in 1457