Francesco de' Rossi was born in Florence, Italy, in 1510 and was a Mannerist painter. Rossi was known by many names, like Francisco Rossi, Cecchino del Salviati, as well as the name he adopted, Francesco Salviati - in honor of Palazzo Salviati.
By 1530, at the age of twenty, Rossi had already studied under Renaissance masters like Andrea del Sarto, Baccio Bandinelli, Giuliano Bugiardini, and Raffaele Brescianino. A year later, he was working alongside Giorgio Vasari, also Bandinelli's pupil, on a series of frescoes in the Palazzo Salviati. This conjunct work portrays The Life of John the Baptist and was concluded for diplomat and Cardinal Giovanni Salviati.
Rossi collaborated with other artists, like Jacopino del Conte. In 1538, the artists completed a fresco together entitled The Visitation for a fraternity in Florence ministering people on death row. This piece is seen as the emerging of Mannerism in Rome, a style of the late-Renaissance in which Rossi was a pioneer.
In 1540, Rossi was traveling to Bologna and Venice and worked with Italian painter Vasari. During his brief stay in Venice, the artist concluded beautiful decorative frescos at the Palazzo Grimani di Santa Maria Formosa. Rossi was greatly influenced by Italian artist Parmigianino, a fellow Mannerist painter, as well as Bronzino.
One of Rossi's most famous masterpiece is The Virgin in Prayer, a sensitive and delicate portrayal of the Virgin Mary. She is bathed in white light, contrasting with a pitch-black background, and wrapped in red, blue, and white fabric.
The Mannerist painter worked with influential patrons, like Cosimo I de Medici, the Duke of Tuscany, in 1543 after returning to Florence. His work mainly consisted of religious paintings, like Deposition, an altarpiece Rossi concluded in 1548 for the main Franciscan church in Florence, the Basilica di Santa Croce.
Rossi traveled extensively to Rome by 1548 for work and continued for the next fifteen years. During this time, the artist completed many noteworthy series of frescoes in prestigious locations like the Palazzo Sacchetti, and the Palazzo Farnese. He painted The Wedding of Canae at the Palazzo della Cancelleria, as well as Birth of John the Baptist.
Salviati, also known as Francesco de' Rossi died in November 1562 in Rome, Italy.