El Greco (“The Greek”), also known as Domenicos Theotocopulos, was a Spanish Renaissance painter, sculptor and architect. El Greco was born in Crete in 1541, which was then part of the Republic of Venice and the center of post-Byzantine art. He had trained and become a master within that tradition and an icon painter. Among his great works, I would like to draw attention to “Pietà (The Lamentation of Christ)”, an oil painting. El Greco had painted this masterpiece around 1565-70 in Italy, during the Cretan period. El Greco, at the age of 26, like other Greek artists, had traveled to Venice and had been influenced by Titian and Tintoretto. During his stay in Italy he broadened his style with aspects of Mannerism and the Venetian Renaissance. He then went to Rome (around 1570) where he opened a shop. Later, in 1577, he moved to Toledo, Spain, where he spent the rest of his life. To differentiate himself from his contemporaries, El Greco invented new and unusual interpretations of religious topics. The artist's serious and lifelong attraction to religious subjects led to the creation of his elongated figures and vibrant atmospheric lights (Jordan 16). Michelangelo and Raphael were dead by the time El Greco arrived in Rome, but their example continued to be dominant and left little room for modernization. Although the legacy of these great masters was irresistible, El Greco was determined to make his mark on Rome. Even though El Greco had dismissed Michelangelo, offering Pope Pius V to paint over the Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel, he could not avoid Michelangelo's influence in his paintings. His works stood out from his contemporaries for their drama...... middle of paper......fs. I chose this painting because it was one of his first works where he uses his skills of mannerism and the Venetian look of colors. In this painting El Greco expressed the pain and sadness of the scene in such a way that, although the painting was not very clear, it still impressed a vivid image on the viewer. This painting has not received the appreciation it should have. Works Cited • Jordan, Patrick. "TRANSFIGURATIONS: El Greco at the Met." Commonweal 130.21 (2003): 16-7. ProQuest Research Library. Network. March 13, 2012. (http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy2.library.drexel.edu/pqrl/docview/210392387/fulltextPDF?accountid=10559) • Art web gallery (http://www. wga. hu/html_m/g/greco_el/03/0309grec.html) • Artcyclopedia (http://www.artcyclopedia.com/history/mannerism.html) • ChristRing Ministries (http://christring.org/shortseries/Symbolism .htm)