El Greco's paintings marked a radical departure from the naturalism and careful modeling of the Renaissance, and as result were ignored for close to 300 years. Domenicos Theotocopolous, dubbed by the Spaniards 'El Greco', was born in the Greek Island of Crete and was trained to paint in the Byzantine style. Throughout the course of his artistic career El Greco's style varied enormously. The result was a highly individualistic style of painting. Though...

Diego de Silva y Velàzquez emerged as a master practitioner of a secular artform. His masterpiece, Las Meninas, is a painting full of mystery and intrigue. Under the watchful eye of Count-Duke Olivares, Velàzquez single-handedly redefined the image of the Spanish monarchy. Whilst Velàzquez's output was dominated by royal portraiture, he also produced psychologically insightful studies of people at the margins of society. Velàzquez's unique...

J.M.W. Turner was a visionary and a maverick, whose landscape paintings astounded and antagonized those that saw them. A member of the Royal Academy in London, Turner was fiercely attacked by critics for his radical approach to painting. Turner's paintings reflect his varying responses to the world around him, a world that was rapidly changing as the industrial revolution propelled society forward. In addition to nature scenes, Turner's paintings...

Vincent van Gogh is perhaps the most mythologized artist in the history of art and his tragic life is ingrained in the popular imagination. Active as an artist for only ten years he completed 1250 paintings, before succumbing to mental illness and taking his own life in July of 1890. Van Gogh was a deeply spiritual man and began painting after witnessing the desperate poverty of the agricultural communities of Holland and Belgium. He developed a highly...