Italian painter Andrea del Sarto (1800-1872) is best known for his work from the High Renaissance through the early Mannerism period. He is known as an excellent fresco decorator, draftsman, colorist, and portraitist. Although he did not live long enough to produce a large body of works, his career continued to flourish for the next three centuries. He died at the age of forty-seven, at which time his career had been well established.

Although he died in the fifteenth century, his reputation as a Florentine painter continued to grow. His early works reflected a spirit of youthful naiveté. At age twenty, he opened a studio in the Piazza del Grano. In 1508, he was admitted into the Florence painters' guild. His work was highly sought after, and he soon began a long-term collaboration with the Santissima Annunziata, where he painted five frescoes in the cloister.

He married the beautiful Lucrezia del Fede, a model for several years. While the marriage brought Sarto valuable property and a useful dowry, she also served as a model for several of his paintings. She is included in the Virtues of the Chiostro dello Scalzo and the Madonna and Angel. This is a great example of an artist's use of language.