Brief Biography-Masaccio was born in San Giovanni Valdarno near Florence. His life was short, dying at the age of twenty-six. His most significant painting years were only between the age of twenty to twenty-six. His father, Ser Giovanni, a notary, died young, leaving his mother, Monna Jacopa, to marry a second time to a pharmacist, Tedesco del Feo, who died after eleven years in 1417. The family moved to Florence in 1422, where they shared a house. Giotto is said to have been his influence in painting; however, he gained considerable knowledge from the sculptor Donatello and the architect Brunelleschi; between them, they were considered originators of what we refer to as the Renaissance.
His most well-known work is a work begun by the painter Masolino in 1425 and continued by Masaccio for the chapel of Antonio Brancacci in the Carmine church. It consists of scenes from the life of Saint Peter. Amongst them are his most famous frescoes, the Tribute Money and the Expulsion from Paradise. His Trinity fresco for the Santa Maria Novella in Florence has a unique perspective, which shows the influence of Brunelleschi.
After being summoned to Rome in 1428, where he may have assisted Masolino in doing frescoes for the church of San Clemente, Masaccio died suddenly of unknown causes.
The cycle of frescoes in the Brancacci Chapel influenced great masters after Masaccio, including Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo Da Vinci and many more.