Christ on the Cross

El Greco, "The Greek," worked in Spain but signed his paintings with his Greek name, Domenikos Theotokopoulos. His work shows the influence of the art of Crete, his birthplace; Crete was a center for the Byzantine artistic tradition, emphasizing abstraction and pattern rather than recording natural appearances. From 1568 to 1577, El Greco lived in Venice and Rome, where Titian's broad brushwork and bright colors, Tintoretto's sweeping movement, and Michelangelo's monumental figures reshaped his Byzantine-influenced style. He was acclaimed for his penetrating portraits, but he also received ecclesiastical commissions throughout Spain, including important altarpieces. His paintings of Toledo are among Europe's first pure landscapes.