The Watermill’s bedrooms are named after famous Italian artists* and we thought it would be fun to tell you more about them in a series of short articles. We’ll also make sure that there’s a copy of their stories in their bedrooms here, for you to enjoy during your stay.

First up is Sandy Little Barrel. The name may be unfamiliar, but we’re sure you know this picture:

Sandro Botticelli, La Primavera, The Uffizi Gallery, Florence. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

We’ll bet you’ve never heard of Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi. Or Sandy Little Barrel, as his better-known nickname might be translated into English. Neither had we! And yet we’ve named one of our Watermill bedrooms after him. Perhaps because he is known to you and me as Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510).

Even though his paintings date from the ehalf of the 15^th Century, Botticelli’s graceful style is reminiscent of the Early Renaissance. His masterpieces La Primavera (above). Late 1470s/early 1480s) and The Birth of Venus (below.) 1484/6) are among the best-known paintings in the world.

Sandro Botticelli, The Birth of Venus, The Uffizi Gallery, Florence. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

And then there’s this painting, with a hidden clue as to what Sandro looked like:

Botticelli – Adoration of the Magi, The Uffizi Gallery, Florence. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Sandro Botticelli, The Adoration of the Magi (detail), The Uffizi Gallery, Florence. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons,

Botticelli was born in Florence in 1445 and died there in 1510. He seldom left the city, apart from a short spell painting in Pisa in 1474, and creating three frescoes in the Sistine Chapel  in Rome (1481-1482)

As well as his famous mythological subjects, Botticelli painted many biblical scenes. One of them, The Adoration of the Magi, (above) contains that clue: the young man looking out at us rather haughtily is thought to be a self-portrait of the artist himself. We’re not sure we would warm to him if we met him in the piazza!

Nonetheless, his  portrait paintings are also exceptional and, in placing the subject in front of a landscape, show how the Italian Renaissance masters were influenced by Flemish art.

Sandro Botticelli, Portrait of a Man with a Medal of Cosimo the Elder, The Uffizi Gallery, Florence. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

According to Vasari  in The Lives of the Artists, the fanatical priest Savonarola persuaded Botticelli to throw some of his paintings on pagan themes into The Bonfire of Vanities in 1497. We’ll never know what was lost but thank goodness La Primavera and The Birth of Venus survived…

 *Who wants a number on the bedroom door when they could be staying in Botticelli, Bronzino or Brunelleschi? Or  Gentileschi, Ghirlandaio or Ghiberti? Or one of another half-dozen famous Italian artists, from Alberti to Vasari?

Some years ago we decided to switch from numbers to names in each of our rooms, They celebrate famous Italian artists, mainly from the Renaissance and mainly men, because (a) the early Renaissance is our favourite artistic period and (b) because few women were painting professionally in those days, and even fewer have become famous. At Lois’ insistence we included Artemesia Gentileschi on our list, and next year we will be introducing Sofonisba Anguissola, despite her tongue-twisting name. Look out for more stories about the artists whose names are celebrated in Watermill bedrooms in the coming weeks.