Tiziano (Titian) Vecellio

Titian was born Tiziano Vecellio in the village of Pieve de Cadore. His father was a captain in the local militia and later served as an overseer of grain supplies and inspector of mines. At the age of nine his father sent him to be apprenticed to a mosaicist. Subsequently, he trained as a painter in the Bellini workshop with Giorgione, with whom he had a life-long rivalry. By 1510 Titian had become an independent master painter and his reputaion was established by a cycle of works on the miracles of St. Anthony, painted in the Scuola del Santo at Padua. In 1516 he took over a large commission from the Bellini's to paint a battle scene in the Ducal Palace at Venice. He was knighted and made court painter by the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V in 1530. He also continued his commissions for the Gonzaga and Medici families. The Venetians were the first painters to let their brushstroke show. Titian built up layer on layer of of transparent oil color to create the illusion of real flesh. His subject was an interest in the drama of human emotions rather than the spiritualized beauty of nature that was Giorgione's interest. Titian lived an exceptionally long, fruitful and successful life. He became rich and reverred as no other Renaissance artist. His breadth of sympathy, the subtlety of his technique, his uncompromising temperament and dignified authority make him one of the greatest painters in Western art. His major works include the "Venus of Urbino", "Sacred and Profane Love", an altarpiece known as the "Pesaro Madonna" and many portraits.

Tiziano (Titian) Vecellio Images:
Bacchus and Ariadne
Crucifixion
Detail From Bacchus And Ariadne
Venus And Adonis