Saint John

Filippino Lippi painted this Saint John panel around 1496, during the peak of his career as one of Florence's leading painters. Son of Fra Filippo Lippi and trained by Botticelli, Filippino developed a highly personal style characterized by nervous energy and decorative complexity. His late works show increasing emotional intensity and formal experimentation. Filippino Lippi was the son of the painter Filippo Lippi and the ward of Botticelli after his father's death, absorbing both influences before developing a highly personal late style notable for its archaeological classicism, nervous energy, and proto-mannerist intensity.

Oil on panel with Filippino's characteristic restless energy and decorative elaboration. The saint's figure shows the expressive, somewhat mannered quality that defines his late work.