Galileo Andrea Maria Chini was born on December 2, 1873 in Florence. After the death of his parents, he was cared for by his uncle Dario, a famous fresco restorer, who enrolled him in decoration courses at the Santa Croce School of Art in Florence.

In 1889, he began working in the studio of the painter Amedeo Buontempo, and five years later collaborated with Augusto Burchi.
In 1895, he began attending the Free School of Nude Painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. That same year, he met Elvira Peschetti, whom he married in 1899. The following year, he founded the L’Arte della Ceramica factory with Giovanni Vannuzzi, Vittorio Giunti and Giovanni Montelatici; together they won two gold medals at international exhibitions in Turin and London.

In 1900, their first daughter Isotta was born, and the following year, their son Eros. He received awards for his ceramics in Brussels, Saint Louis and Saint Petersburg, but due to disagreements with his partners, he left the factory.

Six years later, in Mugello, he founded the Fornaci San Lorenzo factory with his cousin Cino. Four years later, the King of Siam Rama V, having admired his work at the Venice Biennale, invited him to work at court, where he painted frescoes for the throne room of the Royal Palace and also made a series of portraits of the monarch’s family.

In 1912, he returned to Italy for a short time due to the illness of Cino and Elvira; a year later, he returned to his homeland for good. In 1946, his daughter Isotta died; From then on, his activity decreased due to vision problems, which gradually led to blindness. On August 23, 1956, he died in his studio.