SPINELLO (SPINELLI), Italian family of artists

They were active in Tuscany in the 14th and 15th centuries. Like his brother and father, Luca di Spinello worked as a goldsmith and two of his sons were artists: the painter Spinello Aretino and the goldsmith and sculptor Niccolò Spinelli. Spinello was one of the most popular, prolific and important Tuscan painters of the late 14th century and early 15th. Niccolò, who settled in Florence, was the oldest contestant in the 1401-02 competition to make the bronze doors of the Baptistery in Florence. He married the daughter of the painter Andrea di Nerio, who probably trained Spinello. Spinello's son, Parri Spinelli, was also a painter. Niccolò's two sons, Cola Spinelli (1384-1458) and Forzore Spinelli (1397-1477), were goldsmiths in Florence. Forzore's son, Niccolò di Forzore Spinelli, was a medallist who produced numerous large portrait medals.