Nikolaos Tzafouris

Nikolaos Tzafouris
Nikolaos Tzafouris
	Madre della Consolazione 1490
Born	15 century; Crete
Died	16th century or 1501; Crete
Nationality	Greek
Movement	Cretan School

Nikolaos Tzafouris, also Niccolo, Niccolò, Niccolö, Zafuri, Zafuris, (active 1487 - 1501) was a Greek Renaissance painter. He was one of the founders of the Cretan School. His works influenced Emmanuel Tzanes, Elias Moskos, Georgios Klontzas and Theodoros Poulakis. Tzafouris was one of the most respected artists in Crete. His most notable work is Madre della Consolazione. The painting exhibits a combination of Byzantine and Italian styles. Another notable painter in Crete around the same time was Andreas Pavias.

History[]

triptych Deposition, Lamentation and Resurrection by Nikolaos Tzafouris, National Museum, Warsaw, between 1489 and 1501

Tzafouris was born on the island of Crete during the 15th century. He was a painter active from 1487 to 1501. Historians have limited documentation on the life of the artist. Luckily he signed most of his work. He painted religious themes for local churches. The existing documents notate Tzafouris had a workshop in Heraklion. Five of his signed icons survive. His works followed the maniera greca tradition but also exhibited qualities of byzantine paintings and frescos. Many Cretan painters began to adopt a style mixing Byzantine and Italian techniques. One work executed by Nikolaos Tzafouris was a triptych Pietà with Saints Francis and Mary Magdalen which can be found at the Ashmolean Museum.^[1] Another example of signed icon from Nikolaos Tzafouris, Christ Bearing the Cross, is in the collection of Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC.^[2]