El Greco died on 7 April 1614 in Toledo, aged 72. A painter, sculptor and architect, El Greco was born Doménikos Theotokópoulos on the island of Crete, then ruled by Venice, and trained in the Byzantine icon-painting tradition. He moved to Venice, where he studied the work of Titian and Tintoretto, and then to Rome, and in 1577 settled in Toledo, Spain. There he developed a highly personal style with elongated figures, intense colour and dramatic light, most famously in The Burial of the Count of Orgaz and in View of Toledo. His art did not fit the taste of the royal court, and he was largely forgotten after his death, but modern artists, including Picasso and the Expressionists, rediscovered him.
Before and after
- 18 July 1610Death of Caravaggio
- 19 May 1611Birth of Innocent XI
- from 1613 to 1762House of Romanov
- 1614Founding of Tirana
- 7 April 1614Death of El Greco
- from 8 November 1614 to 1 June 1615Siege of Osaka
- 13 March 1615Birth of Innocent XII
- 1616Construction of Sultan Ahmed Mosque
- from 1616 to 1912Qing dynasty
More in Art, literature & culture
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- 31 October 1517Origins of Lutheranism
- 10 November 1517Origins of Protestantism
- 1563Construction of Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial
- 1565Construction of Agra Fort
- from 17th century to 19th centuryAge of Enlightenment
The era
This moment belongs to the Early modern world (1500 CE to 1760 CE), voyages, printing and new ideas. You can also browse everything in the 17th century.