How did Annunciation and Two Donors anticipate elements of Sandro Botticelli’s style?

Fra Filippo Lippi’s Annunciation and Two Donors (c. 1440) anticipates the artistic style of Sandro Botticelli through its innovative composition and the sensitive rendering of movement. Specifically, the painting features the light garments of two frightened girls at a door, depicted with a delicacy and grace that foreshadows the stylistic tendencies later developed by Botticelli, who was Lippi’s pupil.12

Beyond this specific work, Lippi’s broader influence on Botticelli was foundational. From his master, Botticelli acquired a repertory of types and compositions, a linear sense of form, a graceful fancifulness in costuming, and a preference for certain paler hues. While Botticelli later evolved toward a more robust naturalism and stronger color schemes, the linear elegance and expressive grace he learned from Lippi remained a hallmark of his artistic identity.2