Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio … the other Michelangelo.
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio was one of the most dynamic men to ever traipse through history. A rebel, a drunkard, a gambler, a dueler, a lover of men and women, a murderer – and a revolutionary painter whose hyper-realism and "chiaroscuro" changed the way we see the world.
At the turn of the 17th century, Rome, with its Counter-Reformation Vatican and rich and ambitious patrons, was the place for aspiring artists. Caravaggio spent 14 illustrious years, the height of his career, in his adopted home. He skirted between life on the streets and life among intellectuals and aristocrats who were pushing the boundaries of science, culture and discovery in the wake of the Renaissance.
We are blessed with have 20 Caravaggio paintings in Rome - 6 in the Borghese, 6 in churches and a scattering of others Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, Palazzo Barberini, Palazzo Corsini, the Vatican and the Capitoline Museums. - and we can take you to see as many as you wish and have time for!
While walking through narrow, winding streets of Rome’s historic center, we can also show visitors where Caravaggio lived and worked 400 years ago, discuss Caravaggio's unprecedented visual technique, religiosity, sexuality, and culpability in the murder of a local cad and tough guy. And you will uncover and discuss the numerous controversies surrounding the enigmatic genius including why, even now, the circumstances of his death at age 38 remain a mystery.
By the end of the tour, visitors better understand how Caravaggio’s life in Rome directly influenced the monumental and breathtaking paintings we are still privileged to see today.
