Renaissance art involved an artist.
Masaccio ( [ maˈzattʃo ] ; December 21 , 1401 -- summer 1428 ) , born Tommaso di Ser Giovanni di Simone , was the first great Italian painter of the Quattrocento period of the Italian Renaissance . Renaissance art . The serendipitous presence within the region of Florence in the early 15th century of certain individuals of artistic genius , most notably Masaccio , Brunelleschi , Ghiberti , Piero della Francesca , Donatello and Michelozzo formed an ethos out of which sprang the great masters of the High Renaissance , as well as supporting and encouraging many lesser artists to achieve work of extraordinary quality .