Gaddi, Taddeo

Gaddi, Taddeo (d Florence, 1366).
Florentine painter, the son of a painter and mosaicist, Gaddo Gaddi (d c.1330). According to Cennino Cennini, Taddeo was Giotto's godson and worked with him for 24 years. He was one of the leading Florentine artists of his day, as is indicated by the fact that in about 1347 he headed a list of ‘the best masters of painting who are in Florence’ drawn up by the authorities of the church of S. Giovanni Fuorcivitas in Pistoia; the altarpiece he painted for the church (a polyptych of the Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints, completed 1353) is still in situ. Taddeo's best-known works were painted for S. Croce, Florence, notably the frescos devoted to the life of the Virgin in the Baroncelli Chapel (c.1330), and the panels illustrating the life of Christ (c.1330), originally meant for the doors of a sacristy cupboard and now divided among museums in Florence (Accademia), Munich (Alte Pin.), and Berlin (Gemäldegalerie). Many other panels are attributed to him and he must have had a flourishing workshop. Although he was heir to the tradition of Giotto, his style is less heroic and more anecdotal.

Taddeo had three painter sons, of whom the most important was Agnolo (bur. Florence, 16 Oct. 1396), who continued the Giotto manner but modified it still further in the direction of decorative elegance. He is particularly notable for his cool, pale colours, which influenced the refined late Gothic art of artists of the next generation such as Lorenzo Monaco. Agnolo's works include frescos on the story of the Cross in the chancel of S. Croce (c.1390) and on the story of the Virgin and her girdle in the chapel of the Holy Girdle in Prato Cathedral (1392–5). Many panel paintings also are attributed to him.