\paperw19995 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \fi15 \f1 Italian painter.\par
\fi0 The son of a notary, Poppi studied grammar from a very early age. But his skill at drawing w
as soon noticed by Pietro Vasari, the brother of Giorgio, who sent the boy to Florence in order to develop his talent. Thus, between 1559 and 1562, Poppi found himself painting frescoes in the Palazzo Vecchio, the so-called ôtesoretto,ö with images repre
senting the \i Arts\i0 ;\i \i0 and in the Sala di Penelope, where he worked alongside Jan van der Straet. Later on, he came under the influence of Giovan Battista Naldini, who persuaded him to study Raphael, Polidoro da Caravaggio and ancient statuary.
Between 1570 and 1571 Poppi decorated the ceiling of Francesco IÆs studio, which was also in the Palazzo Vecchio. For the same small and extremely refined room he painted, around the same time and in a sophisticated and captivating manner, two small pane
ls entitled the \i Foundry\i0 and \i Alexander and Campaspe\i0 , that highly pleased his patrons. After 1580, a certain rigidity crept into PoppiÆs style û perhaps as a consequence of the dictates of the Counter Reformation û as can be seen in works lik
e the \i Resurrection\i0 in San Michelino Visdomini and \i Jesus Healing the Leper\i0 and the \i Deposition \i0 in San Marco.
