El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos)

Greek / Spanish
El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos) Christ Blessing ('The Saviour of the World') About 1600

Biography

Born 1541
Died 1614
Nationalities Greek
Spanish
Birth place Candia
Death place Toledo

Domenikos Theotokopoulos was born in Crete and became known as El Greco ('the Greek') in Spain where he established his reputation as a painter with an original and distinctive style. In Crete he had trained in the Byzantine tradition of icon painting. He then moved to Venice where he developed a freer handling of paint inspired by Titian and Tintoretto. He also spent some years in Rome before leaving for Spain. He settled in the cultural centre of Toledo and produced numerous paintings, ranging from altarpieces to portraits.