El Greco
A great artist of the Middle Ages
Biography
El Greco was born in Greece, Crete in 1541. His full name is Domenikos Theotokopoulos but was called II Greco by Italians The Greek and was later changed to El Greco by the Spanish. Before settling in Spain he traveled to Italy, Rome, and Venice. He was tutored by Titian and schooled for a while at the painters' guild of St. Luke. Greco migrated to Spain for various reasons One of them was to work at the great monastery of Escorial, which was begun by King Philip II in 1536. He knew that Philip was a great patron towards Titian, providing for him and helping him do his work. Greco then took after his tutor and created amazing paintings like, The Miracle of Christ Healing the Blind, Christ carrying the Cross, and Saint Paul. To help provide for him to continue his work was Philip and Cardinal Alejandro Farnese.
Example of Work: The Miracle of Christ healing the blind
Artist: El Greco
Created: Possibly in 1570
Location: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Description;
Greco uses linear perspective, shown by a narrow road connecting all the way to the center at a point. Colors that were chosen helped detail the people's clothing and features. Shadows were implemented to give the painting a feeling of time and setting.This artwork represents Classicism. It is this because it represents a historical event; the architecture is detailed along with the characters that are painted.
I find this Painting interesting because of the use of artistic skills and it's effect it has on religion. Greco is known for creating religious artwork, especially historical events like presented in this painting. Through these paintings it is suppose to spread the stories of the Christian religion and it's values. This painting shows great significance because of the importance of these events.