Caravaggio's Criminal History: The Painter Was Guilty of Many Transgressions, Including Murder. The Daily Telegraph « Artwatch. Misreading Visual Evidence ~ No 1: David Hockney, an art historian and an x-ray photograph It was recently claimed that “fresh insight” gained on Caravaggio’s painting technique supports David Hockney’s theory that the artist used a primitive form of photography to create his paintings (“Exhibition sheds new light on the art of Caravaggio”, Daily Telegraph report, March 11th).
Diagrams, mirrors and light boxes displayed in an exhibition at the Palazzo Venezia in Rome, were said to “show” that Caravaggio “may indeed have” used a camera obscura to project figures on to a canvas so that they might be painted directly, with “extraordinary realism” and without any need for designs or preliminary studies. Showing that someone may have done something cuts no ice when logic, logistics and the laws of art all combine to testify against the Hockney hypothesis. Caravaggio's Narcissus makes splash in Havana - Art - Arts & Entertainment. Narcissus, painted from 1597 to 1599, shows the handsome youth bent over a pool, eyes locked on his own reflection.
A dozen other paintings by Caravaggio's followers are also in the exhibit at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, which runs until November 27. Caravaggio "couldn't have a better surrounding than this," said Rosella Vodret, the head if the Polo Museale of the city of Rome, which is presenting the exhibition in Havana as part of a cultural initiative. Caravaggio Biography. After the death of his father, Caravaggio's mother moved her family back to the small town from where the artist got his name.
In 1584, at the age of 13, Caravaggio was apprenticed to the mediocre local artist Peterzano. Caravaggio stayed in Peterzano's workshop for four years, learning the basics of the artist's craft. The years 1588 to 1592 in Caravaggio's life remain obscure, although one biographer suggests that the artist visited Venice during that time.
Whatever the case, by 1592 the impetuous 21-year-old artist decided to pack his bags and move to Rome without any money in his pocket and without having completed a single notable commission that would help him gain work. Although work abounded in bustling Counter-Reformation Rome, the last thing anyone needed was another poor and aspiring talent. This dashing artist was famous for his remarkable speed as well as his panache: the Cavaliere was known to paint in full dress, complete with lace cuffs and sword. Caravaggio. With most artists we know about their lives and personalities from biographies that friends or contemporaries wrote about them.
In the case of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, however, we know about his life primarily from police records! From these accounts, we learn that he had a bad temper and could be violent, and that he was frequently arrested and imprisoned for assault. He appears on the police records for mild offenses like carrying weapons without permission, as well as more serious ones where he is involved in violent fights. He was even questioned once because he "gave offense" to a woman and her daughter—one wonders what that could mean!
Caravaggio's crimes exposed in Rome's police files. 18 February 2011Last updated at 12:58 By David Willey BBC News, Rome Continue reading the main story Clickable Against Michelangelo De Caravaggio charged with illegal possession of a sword and a dagger.
See Arrest Reports Folio 193 Released without charge and weapons were returned to accused. Saturday 28 May 1605. Beheading of St. John the Baptist. There are two paintings by Caravaggio in Malta – St.
Jerome Writing (above), a quiet, dark portrait of the saint waking up in the middle of the night to jot something down, and the massive, magnificent Beheading of St. John the Baptist. I love the Jerome painting. It calms me just to look at it. May 2011. I know I've been slow in getting back to the blog.
Here's why. I spent the final week of the trip up north on Lake Como, where access to internet was limited, and I was pretty tied up with working. It was a perfect, thoughtful end to an intense and restless month. The Caravaggio Mafia Heist. I'm in Palermo, where the presence and influence of La Cosa Nostra (the Sicilian mafia, literally translated as "Our Thing") is still considered impressive.
There once was a great Caravaggio painting to see here, "Nativity with Saints Francis and Lawrence," but it has now been undergroud for 41 years. Death Scene. I had a terrific trip to the coast yesterday to investigate the scene of Caravaggio's final days.
The rediscovered documents at the State Archives have revealed new information about his death. Many biographers originally reported that he died on the beach, looking out to sea, with dolphins leaping and the sun setting and mermaids weeping. A nice romantic idea. But the real story is even better. April 2011. I'm in Palermo, where the presence and influence of La Cosa Nostra (the Sicilian mafia, literally translated as "Our Thing") is still considered impressive.
The Art Sleuth — Arts. In 1610, Caravaggio—at his time an eminent Italian Baroque painter, most recognizable for an uncanny portrait of Medusa—died under mysterious circumstances at the peak of his infamy. Four years previous, two of his paintings were rejected by their commissioners: St. Peter’s Basilica rejected one on account of his voluptuous depiction of the Virgin Mary and morally ambiguous interpretation of Jesus, and Santa Maria della Scala rejected another, Death of the Virgin, for realism bordering on blasphemy. Caravaggio's police records. Caravaggiomania! Caravaggio's Rap Sheet Reveals Him to Have Been a Lawless Sword-Obsessed Wildman, and a Terrible Renter. Very few cultural figures achieve one-name status.
Madonna. Björk. Britney. Among painters, that same icon status is reserved for Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio — the artist whom we just call Caravaggio. Now, a newly restored trove of police records and other historical documents on view at Rome's Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza offers fresh tidbits to feed his rock star-like legend, offering further proof, if any be needed, that the famous rogue had a dark side that extended well beyond his masterful use of chiaroscuro.
[content:shareblock] Gallery insists Caravaggio is genuine. JEROME REILLY – Updated 04 December 2012 06:03 AM. Previously unknown painting by Caravaggio discovered in Britain. Caravaggio: the original sinner. But there is a logic to it all and, with hindsight, a tragic inevitability. New Caravaggio biography casts light on Renaissance hellraiser. How Caravaggio saw in the dark. Paintings by artist Caravaggio. New Caravaggio discovery - Art History News - by Bendor Grosvenor. A portrait of an intriguing man. A portrait of an intriguing man 8:48am Monday 11th October 2010 in Reviews By Jim Greenhalf, T&A Reporter Andrew Graham-Dixon looks at the life and works of Italian artist Caravaggio Earlier this week, art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon took his latest book to Ilkley Literature Festival.