Cimabue, Giovanni Artists Art History

(c.1302) Florentine painter, whose real name was Cenni di Pepo or Peppi. The works with which his name is associated constitute a transition in painting from the strictly formalized Byzantine style, hitherto prevalent in Italy, to the freer expression of the 14th cent. Cimabue retained most of the old conventions but introduced greater naturalism in his treatment of figures. From encyclopedia.com