author
I. B. (Igino Benvenuto) Supino
1858–1940
An Italian painter, critic, and pioneering art historian, he helped shape the study of medieval and Renaissance art in Italy. His writing ranges from major artists such as Fra Angelico to the art and monuments of Pisa and Bologna.
1 Audiobook
Fra Angelico
by I. B. (Igino Benvenuto) Supino
About the author
Born in Pisa in 1858, Igino Benvenuto Supino studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence and also worked as a self-taught painter. Over time he became better known for scholarship than for painting, building a reputation as an art critic and historian with a strong interest in Italian medieval and Renaissance art.
Supino played an important role in the cultural life of Pisa, where he helped establish the city museum in the former church and convent of San Francesco in 1893. He later taught at the University of Bologna, where he served for many years as professor of art history and directed the Institute of Medieval and Modern Art History.
His books include studies of Fra Angelico, Beato Angelico, the Camposanto of Pisa, and Pisan art more broadly. Remembered as one of the early scholars who helped turn art history into a modern academic field in Italy, he combined close attention to works of art with a lifelong commitment to preserving and interpreting Italy’s artistic heritage.