Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (29 September 1571-18 July 1610) was an Italian artist who was born in Milan. He was the first major representative artist of the Baroque school. Orphaned at an early age, in 1584 he was sent by his brother to Milan as an apprentice in the workshop of Simon Pertezano. In 1592 leaves Milan and goes to the Rome of Clement VIII in search of fortune. During the next years, the artist barely working for other artists and is hosted at home of Pandolfo Pucci eating only a salad every day. He becomes ill, and there are reports after recovering from its association with Prospero Orsi, a painter of grotesque. In this period belong his first works, which include “Bacchus” and “Young with a basket of fruit”. After, he tried to live by himself painting self-portraits or paintings inspirited by himself, but he doesn’t succeed and lived on charity. His situation improved thanks to the protection of Cardinal Del Monte, which makes for him outstanding works and altarpieces of the Contarelli Chapel. This is one of the few peaceful moments in the life of the artist. From then, he received numerous public and private offers for working. When he worked a couple of weeks, he waste the next month, playing ball and getting into fights. In a scuffle injures Flavio Canonico, Sergeant Castel dell'Angelo and is imprisoned. In 1605 hurts the notary Mariano Pasqualone and flees from Rome but returned. But he killed Ranuccio Tomassoni and he flees from Rome again and now, forever. While fleeing, Rubens takes the Caravaggio’s picture The Dormition of the Virgin and is exhibited in Rome during 8 days causing controversy because of the naturalness show of the Virgin. Then, fleeing, he will go to Malta, Syracuse, Messina, Palermo and Naples, where he was seriously wounded in the face making him unrecognizable. In July 1610 undertakes the return journey to Rome, but in Porto Ecole, a Spanish territory in the confines of the Papal States, was arrested by mistake. After two days was released but he had missed the boat that should bring him to Rome. He went to the beach and died, on 18 July of 1610, of malignant fever. The novelty of Caravaggio was the radical naturalism, physically close observation combined with a dramatic scene and the approach at chiaroscuro, the use of light and shadow.
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