Signorelli was born in Cortona and developed an unusually powerful approach to the human figure. He worked across central Italy, creating altarpieces and fresco cycles whose bodies, movements, and dramatic groupings anticipate some concerns of the High Renaissance. His participation in the Sistine Chapel campaign came early in the development of his mature style.
He is associated with the Moses cycle in the Sistine Chapel, particularly the Testament and Death of Moses, a work also connected with Bartolomeo della Gatta. The original entrance-wall Dispute over the Body of Moses, traditionally attributed to Signorelli, was damaged and subsequently replaced. These subjects require care in distinguishing surviving paintings from lost originals.
Signorelli’s figures are muscular, animated, and often placed in difficult poses. He used movement and the expressive possibilities of the body to intensify religious storytelling. His approach is particularly visible in the frescoes of the San Brizio Chapel at Orvieto, where judgment, resurrection, and the destiny of humanity become scenes of extraordinary physical drama.
The Orvieto frescoes are central to his reputation and provide an illuminating comparison with Michelangelo’s later Last Judgment. Although the two artists differ in many respects, Signorelli helped demonstrate how large groups of human figures could convey the terror, hope, and urgency of biblical prophecy.