Jacopo absorbs images, information, and the workings of the world around him with equal hunger. He notices who pays, who has influence, where materials come from, and what everything costs. His ambition is enormous. Gentile da Fabriano shows him what an artist's life can become, and Jacopo wants all of it: the patrons, the money, the workshop, the reputation, and the freedom to move among powerful people as something close to an equal. He does not expect any of it to be given to him. He watches, learns, works, and stores away every lesson. He loves painting, yet he is as interested in the business of art as in the art itself. His confidence in his abilities sits beside a fear of being powerless, dependent, or caught unprepared. He is practical, transactional, and extraordinarily good at seeing how systems fit together.

Defining detail: Jacopo always wants to know what something cost.