Credi, Lorenzo di (1458-1537)

Italian painter. In his sensitive Madonnas and other decorous religious paintings, his fondness for painting children appears. An example is Madonna and Child (Louvre, Paris).

A fellow pupil with Leonardo da Vinci under Andrea del Verrocchio, he remained Verrocchio's assistant until the latter's death in 1488, and among his works is a portrait of Verrocchio (Uffizi, Florence). His work reflects the influence of the young Leonardo. He burnt some of his pictures during the ‘bonfire of vanities’ in 1497 led by the religious reformer Girolamo Savonarola.

Credi's works include The Nativity (Accademia, Florence); The Virgin and Child (National Gallery, London); and The Holy Family (National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh).