Tintoretto (1518-1594)

One of the great Mannerist artists of Venice, Jacopo Robusti Tinotoretto is best known for his monumental and dramatic religious works, particularly those that utilize the technique of foreshortening perspective. Influenced by several Old Masters of the Italian Renaissance, like Piero della Francesca (1420-92), Giovanni Bellini (1430-1516), and Titian (1477-1576), Tintoretto’s most notable works include the Miracle of the Slave, 1548 (Accademia, Venice) and the series of paintings he completed for the Scuola di San Rocco between 1565 to 1587.

Little is known of his early life. Tinoretto was a nickname, derived as a result of his father's profession, a dyer (for which the Italian word is tintore). He was born in Venice, the eldest of 21 children. It is believed that he showed an early talent for drawing so his father took the young teenager to the studio of Titian to be apprenticed in fine art painting.

Woman Who Uncovers The Bosom,
Museo del Prado, Spain (1570).

However, after only 2 weeks, Titian sent his new pupil home. It has been speculated that the great master was jealous of his young apprentice's talent. However, it may be more likely that Titian thought his pupil showed far too much independence of thought to become a manageable pupil. Although we do not know if Tintoretto studied with any other famous artists, his early works show the influence of other artists of the Renaissance in Venice, notably Andrea Schiavone, who specialized in small scale religious and mythological pictures.

Tintoretto spent hours studying models, including models carved by Michelangelo. Like Titian, he became an expert in modelling in wax and clay. This helped him to create figures for organizing the arrangement of his pictures. Sometimes he even used dead bodies as models, suspending them from a wooden box. Unfortunately, many of Tintoretto's early fresco paintings are no longer in existence.

The Last Supper (1594) (Detail).

In his early career, Tintoretto is believed to have worked for very small fees, and thus received a large number of commissions as a result. One of his early pictures, Presentation of Jesus In The Temple, can still be seen at the Church of the Carmine in Venice, and illustrates his developing virtuosity. In fact, history of art experts consider that he went on to acquire the drawing technique of Michelangelo and the colour painting technique of Titian. However, he remained highly individual, often exaggerating light and movement in his pictures for dramatic effect.

In 1546 Tintoretto painted his three important works for the Church of Madonna Dell'Orto in Venice: The Worship of the Golden Calf, The Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple, and The Last Judgment (which was subsequently badly repainted).

Susanna Bathing, Kunsthistorisches
Museum, Vienna (1555).

WORLD'S BEST ART
For a list of the finest works, see:
Greatest Paintings Ever.

In 1560, he commenced work on the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, Venice. This series of paintings is one of his most acclaimed works and took 23 years to complete. And while the Scuola has numerous paintings by such great artists as Titian and Giorgione, it is the many paintings of Tintoretto that continue to inspire awe to this day. His rough, unorthodox use of brushstroke was criticized at the time, but future generations have appreciated it as a means of heightening drama and tension.

Other works by Tintoretto include: The Last Judgment, Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco; Madonna and Child, c.1570 (The Metropolitan Museum of Art); Portrait of a Man, c.1540 (Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco); Young Man from the Renialme Family, c.1547 (The Metropolitan Museum of Art); The Finding of Moses, c.1518 (The Minneapolis Institute of Arts); The Annunciation, c.1560 (The Fitzwilliam Museum); Christ at the Sea of Galilee, c.1575 (National Gallery of Art); The Raising of Lazarus, c.1558 (Minneapolis Institute of Arts); The Conversion of Saint Paul, c.1545 (National Gallery of Art); and Torture of a Saint with Hooks (Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco).

WORLDS TOP ARTISTS
For top creative practitioners, see:
Best Artists of All Time.
For the greatest view painters, see:
Best Landcape Artists.
For the greatest genre-painting, see:
Best Genre Painters.
For the top allegorical painting,
see: Best History Painters.

Tintoretto’s last significant oil painting was Paradise, which remains one of the biggest paintings ever painted, measuring 74 feet by 30 feet. After the completion of Paradise, he became a member of the Scuola di Mercanti in 1592. Two years later he died at the age of 76. Noted above all for the drama, panache and monumental scale of his history painting (religious and mythological), Tintoretto exerted a huge influence on many other artists of the Mannerism and Baroque schools, but above all, on the work of El Greco. His works can be seen in the best art museums across the globe.

• For a chronology of important dates in the evolution of the visual arts, see: Timeline - History of Art.
• For information about the best artists in Ireland, see: Irish Art Encyclopedia.