Michelangelo Merisi, known as Caravaggio, was born in 1571. His exact birthplace is uncertain and is generally given as either Milan or the nearby town of Caravaggio, from which his familiar name derives.
Caravaggio trained in Milan with the painter Simone Peterzano. He later moved to Rome, probably arriving during the early 1590s. His first years there were difficult. He worked for other painters and produced relatively small pictures before attracting important patrons.
Cardinal Francesco Maria del Monte became one of his most significant early supporters. Through Del Monte and other patrons, Caravaggio gained access to influential Roman circles. His reputation grew rapidly.
A major turning point came with his commission for the Contarelli Chapel in the church of San Luigi dei Francesi. His paintings devoted to Saint Matthew brought his work before a large public. Their unusual naturalism and dramatic use of light established him as one of Rome's most important painters.
Religious commissions soon became central to his career. Caravaggio painted altarpieces and private devotional works for churches, religious institutions, and individual patrons. Some were enthusiastically received. Others proved controversial and were rejected or replaced.
Caravaggio's personal life was frequently turbulent. Court records document repeated disputes and acts of violence. In 1606 he killed Ranuccio Tomassoni during a confrontation in Rome. Facing severe legal consequences, Caravaggio fled the city.
The remaining four years of his life were spent moving through southern Italy and the Mediterranean. He worked in Naples before traveling to Malta, where he became a Knight of the Order of Saint John. Following another violent confrontation, he was imprisoned and expelled from the Order.
Caravaggio escaped from Malta and traveled through Sicily. He worked in Syracuse, Messina, and Palermo before returning to Naples. His paintings from these final years became increasingly spare and somber.
In 1610 Caravaggio set out from Naples while apparently hoping to receive a papal pardon that would permit his return to Rome. He died near Porto Ercole in July of that year. He was thirty-eight years old.
His career had been remarkably brief, but its influence was enormous. Artists throughout Italy and northern Europe adopted aspects of his naturalism and dramatic lighting. These followers became known collectively as the Caravaggisti.