Siciolante became an assistant to Perino del Vaga (1501-1547) following a probable apprenticeship with Leonardo Grazia da Pistoia (active in 1520-1550). His earliest certain surviving work -an altarpiece depicting the Virgin and Child with Saints Peter, Stephen and John the Baptist (1541) for SS. Stefano e Pietro, Valvisciolo- reflects the influence of both artists. While this is a rudimentary piece, he subsequently developed a more confident style under Perino's tutelage. In 1543 he joined the Accademia di S. Luca in Rome, an institution over which he was later to preside (1554-1556). Although he continued to assist Perino with various commissions, he also worked alone such as on his monumental altarpiece of the Virgin and Child Enthroned with Saints and Donor (completed 1548) for S. Martino Maggiore, Bologna. The 1560s constituted the most prolific period of his career, during which he executed several large altarpieces and fresco cycles for churches in Rome; alongside Taddeo Zuccaro (1529-1566) and others, he was also responsible for frescoes in the Sala Regia in the Vatican (1563-1565) (Turner, N.: From Michelangelo to Annibale Carracci. A century of Italian drawings from the Prado, Art Services International-Museo Nacional del Prado, 2008, p. 100).