Greek-born Spanish Mannerist Painter, 1541-1614 Considered a representative of late Renaissance Spanish art, El Greco was actually born in Greece, on the island of Crete. After studying in Venice under Titian, El Greco settled in Toledo, Spain in 1577. At the time he was wildly popular, his emotionally religious paintings being just the ticket for the hometown of the Spanish Inquisition. After his death his work was largely ignored until the beginning of the 20th century; now he considered one of the inspired geniuses of Western art. His distinctive style features bold shapes and colors, with elongated and slightly distorted figures. In Toledo El Greco was in constant demand and liked living large: he maintained a private orchestra to accompany his meals.  Related Paintings of El Greco :. | The Risen Christ | Hochzeit zu Kana | Mary Magdalen in Penitence | cleansing of the temple | A Cardinal |
Related Artists:
Frank Street
American, 1893-1944
Ludwig Knaus
German Painter, 1829-1910 was a German genre painter of the younger Desseldorf school. He was born at Wiesbaden and studied from 1845 to 1852 under Sohn and Schadow in Desseldorf. His early works, like "The Gamblers," in the Desseldorf Gallery, are in the manner of that school, being dark and heavy in color. This deficiency was remedied by study at Paris, whither he went in 1852 and enrolled as a pupil of Couture. In 1853 his "Morning after the Kermess" received the second gold Medal of the Salon and made him a celebrated painter. Except for a year's study in Italy he remained in Paris until 1860.New International Encyclopedia His chief works of this period include "The Golden Wedding," "The Baptism," and "The Promenade," purchased for the Luxembourg. From 1861 to 1866 he practiced at Berlin, producing such works as "Boys Playing Cards," "Looking for a Bride" (Wiesbaden Museum), and "His Highness on His Travels." The next eight years of his life saw the production of much of his best work, including "The Children's Festival" (Nation Gallery, Berlin), "In Great Distress," and "The Village Prince." From 1874 to 1883 he was professor at the Academy of Berlin, continuing to reside in that city until his death. Among the most importand works of his last period were: "The Holy Family" and "The Road to Ruin," both painted in 1876 and now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; "Behind the Curtain" (1880), Dresden Gallery; "The Rag Baby" (1880) and "A Village Festival" (1881), both in the Vanderbilt collection, Metropolitan Museum, New York; and "A Duel." During his last period Knaus also painted a series of "Idyls," with nudes in a rather classical style, of which an important example is in the Wiesbaden Museum.
Henry William Pickersgill
English Painter, 1782-1875 was an English painter specialising in portraits. He was a Royal Academician for almost fifty years, and painted many of the most notable figures of his time. Born in London, Pickersgill was adopted in his youth by a Mr Hall, a silk manufacturer in Spitalfields, who financed his schooling and then took him into the family business. However, when war caused difficult trading conditions, Pickersgill opted to develop his talent for painting into a career, and was a pupil of landscape artist George Arnald between 1802 - 1805 before entering the Royal Academy Schools as a student in November 1805.His early subjects were varied and included landscapes and classical and historical themes, but he eventually settled to portraiture as his speciality. His first exhibit at the Royal Academy was a portrait of his benefactor Mr Hall, and during his lifetime he showed a total of 384 paintings there. He was elected to associate membership of the Academy in November 1822 and full membership in February 1826. Pickersgill was one of the pre-eminent portrait painters of his day. William Wordsworth, George Stephenson, Jeremy Bentham, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington and Faraday were among the many notable people who sat for him. He famously painted author James Silk Buckingham and his wife Elizabeth in Arab costume in 1816, reflecting Buckingham's own travels in the East as well as the fashion of the times for the Orient. The National Portrait Gallery, London has over 50 of his portraits in its collection, including 16 original oils and 35 engravings after him, along with a small number of portraits of Pickersgill himself by others. From 1856?C64 he was librarian of the Royal Academy. He retired from the institution in December 1872, and died at his home in Blandford Square, London at the age of 93. Pickersgill's brother Richard, son Henry Hall and nephew Frederick Richard were also painters.