Andrea del Verrocchio (Andrea di Michele de' Cioni)

Born and buried in Florence, Verrocchio worked in his native city and nearby towns until the last years of his life. Like many other Renaissance sculptors, he started his career as a goldsmith and became equally successful as a painter. His shop provided training for numerous Florentine artists, from Botticelli to Leonardo da Vinci. He was a favorite of the Medici, for whom he designed tombs in S. Lorenzo and the famous bronze figure of David now in the Bargello, Florence. Among other important commissions was the monumental bronze equestrian statue of Bartolommeo Colleoni, in Venice, which Verrocchio was working on at the time of his death.

Source: Art in The Frick Collection: Paintings, Sculpture, Decorative Arts, New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1996.