Bernardino Borgognone (1455/60–1525) was an Italian

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

of the Milanese school. Bernardino grew up and worked in the

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

region. He was the chief assistant to his brother and fellow painter Ambrogio Bergognone on important projects in Lombardy in the 1490s. Their use of

mordant A mordant or dye fixative is a substance used to set (i.e. bind) dyes on fabrics by forming a coordination complex with the dye, which then attaches to the fabric (or tissue). It may be used for dyeing fabrics or for intensifying stains in ...

(the adhesive to which the gold leaf is attached)

gilding Gilding is a decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold over solid surfaces such as metal (most common), wood, porcelain, or stone. A gilded object is also described as "gilt". Where metal is gilded, the metal below was tradi ...

in their art is distinctive. Bernardino's style of painting appears influenced by fellow Lombard painter

Vincenzo Foppa Vincenzo Foppa ( – ) was an Italian painter from the Renaissance period. While few of his works survive, he was an esteemed and influential painter during his time and is considered the preeminent leader of the Early Lombard School. He spent hi ...

. The

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director o ...

, London, has one of his works: ''The Virgin and Child with Two Angels''. The name Bernardino can be read on the hem of the Virgin's mantle. This work shows stylistic similarities with his brother Ambrogio at the time of their collaboration at the

Certosa di Pavia The Certosa di Pavia is a monastery and complex in Lombardy, Northern Italy, situated near a small town of the same name in the Province of Pavia, north of Pavia. Built in 1396–1495, it was once located on the border of a large hunting ...

, composed of the church and convent of the

Carthusians The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians ( la, Ordo Cartusiensis), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order has its ...

. He worked there with his brother furnishing the designs of the figures of the virgin, saints and apostles for the choir-stalls, executed in tarsia or inlaid wood work by Bartolomeo Pola.

References

1450s births 1525 deaths 15th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 16th-century Italian painters Painters from Milan Italian Renaissance painters Fresco painters {{Italy-painter-15thC-stub