The Influence and Artistic Intent of Caravaggio
Josh Smiertka
Art History II
Rinck
The Influence and Artistic Intent of Caravaggio
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, an Italian painter, known to be one of the most influential painters of the Baroque period. Known for his realistic portrayal of the human state, along with the use of dramatic lighting and intense use of tenebrism. While Caravaggio’s dramatic lighting is very iconic, he was most notorious for his naturalistic and raw approach to portraying his subjects. With Caravaggio’s homicidal tendencies aside, this raw and uncensored approach that he took led him to become an infamous painter of 89 pieces during his lifetime. Evidence can be seen from future painters and even in photography, that Caravaggio is one of, if not the most influential painter to have come out of the Baroque period. Caravaggio did not acquire this status easily and, as a matter of fact, lived a rather tempestuous life.
Born in Milan to Fermo Merisi and Lucia Aratori, Caravaggio lived an unfortunate life early on. He was orphaned at a young age, and as a result, ended up as an apprentice to Simone Peterzano, to happened to have been a former apprentice of Titian. This eventually led him to become an assistant to various artists in Rome, before setting out on his own.
Caravaggio’s first main commission was a series of three monumental canvases devoted to St. Matthew that he painted for the Contarelli Chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi. The most notable piece of art in this series is The Calling of St. Matthew. Caravaggio’s naturalistic style really came into its own in this piece. Caravaggio painted the world how he knew it, and his pieces reflected that. The subjects in his art were not idealized, such as the figures in High Renaissance art. Neither were they distorted, elongated, or overtly elegant like the figures commonly seen in Mannerism art. This naturalistic depiction of people was shocking and seen as radical.
Specifically, in The Calling of St. Matthew, Caravaggio
Art History II
Rinck
The Influence and Artistic Intent of Caravaggio
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, an Italian painter, known to be one of the most influential painters of the Baroque period. Known for his realistic portrayal of the human state, along with the use of dramatic lighting and intense use of tenebrism. While Caravaggio’s dramatic lighting is very iconic, he was most notorious for his naturalistic and raw approach to portraying his subjects. With Caravaggio’s homicidal tendencies aside, this raw and uncensored approach that he took led him to become an infamous painter of 89 pieces during his lifetime. Evidence can be seen from future painters and even in photography, that Caravaggio is one of, if not the most influential painter to have come out of the Baroque period. Caravaggio did not acquire this status easily and, as a matter of fact, lived a rather tempestuous life.
Born in Milan to Fermo Merisi and Lucia Aratori, Caravaggio lived an unfortunate life early on. He was orphaned at a young age, and as a result, ended up as an apprentice to Simone Peterzano, to happened to have been a former apprentice of Titian. This eventually led him to become an assistant to various artists in Rome, before setting out on his own.
Caravaggio’s first main commission was a series of three monumental canvases devoted to St. Matthew that he painted for the Contarelli Chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi. The most notable piece of art in this series is The Calling of St. Matthew. Caravaggio’s naturalistic style really came into its own in this piece. Caravaggio painted the world how he knew it, and his pieces reflected that. The subjects in his art were not idealized, such as the figures in High Renaissance art. Neither were they distorted, elongated, or overtly elegant like the figures commonly seen in Mannerism art. This naturalistic depiction of people was shocking and seen as radical.
Specifically, in The Calling of St. Matthew, Caravaggio