Cellini : Artist, Genius, Fugitive

Cellini was one of the most successful artists of his age, a goldsmith and sculptor of extraordinary ability whose works of art were coveted by the wealthy throughout Renaissance Europe. Yet he was also, as a contemporary described him, 'spirited, proud, vigorous, most resolute, and truly terrible'. Frequently tactless in dealing with those who employed him, undiscriminating in his sexual encounters, his temper was legendary and he killed three men. How can we reconcile the sensitive artist and craftsman with the violent, promiscuous, brutal man? In this biography, the first for many years, Derek Parker tells the story of Cellini in the context of his times, thus allowing a full portrait of the man to emerge. Born in Florence in 1500, Benvenuto Cellini grew up in the shadow of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael. Originally intended for a career as a musician, Cellini's talent for drawing was quickly apparent, and he was apprenticed to a goldsmith. Aged seventeen he turned down an offer to join the great sculptor, Torrigiani, at the court of Henry VIII and, soon afterward, was accepting commissions at the extravagant court of the Medicis and from Pope Clement VII.

Derek Parker is a writer and journalist. He is the author of more than forty books