Artist on the Run: Caravaggio in Malta, Sicily and Naples

One of the most controversial yet popular artists of his time, Caravaggio’s reputation has waxed and waned through the centuries.  Since the 1950’s, appreciation for his innovative and shocking style has sky-rocketed, influencing artists and cinematographers alike.  Special exhibitions of his work draw record crowds as people seek to understand the genius of Caravaggio.

We’ll touch on his beginnings in Milan, studying with the Mannerist painter Simone Peterzano, and examine his early years in Rome as we come to understand the dichotomy of the virtuoso artist and the ruffian who ultimately killed a man and had to flee for safety.  The work he subsequently did in Naples, Malta and Sicily will be the focus of the lecture as we see the ways his work changed due to his extreme circumstances, both physical and psychological.