Tiziano Vecellio (Titian)

Tiziano Vecellio (c. 1488–1576) dominated the Venetian Renaissance for over six decades. Trained under Giovanni Bellini and Giorgione, Titian established his supremacy in 1518 with the colossal Assumption of the Virgin on the high altar of the Frari in Venice, characterized by dramatic kinetic movement and incandescent color.

Titian's revolutionary oil techniques—laying down rich glazes and in his old age applying paint with his bare fingers—transformed painting from linear draftsmanship (*disegno*) to fluid, sensual chromatic atmosphere. Court painter to Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (who personally retrieved Titian's dropped paintbrush) and King Philip II of Spain, he created immortal mythological 'poesie' and royal portraits.