masaccio (, , ; december 21, 1401 – summer 1428), born tommaso di ser giovanni di simone, was a famous painter of the italian renaissance. he worked in florence. "masaccio" was a nickname that meant "fat untidy tom". he lived a very short life and only a few of his paintings exist, but they were so different to the style of other artists around him that they helped other painters to see things in a new way.