The Problematic Life of Caravaggio

Feature image: Caravaggio, The Beheading of Saint John, 1608 via Sotheby's

The term “tortured artist” derives from the romanticization of artists’ suffering--suffering that, to the consumer, exists merely for the sake of the artistic process. Historically, however, it is evident that some of our most beloved artists have struggled with very real mental health issues. Vincent van Gogh, for example, is the epitome of a tortured artist; he struggled severely with depression, bipolar disorder, and psychosis. Other artists like Francisco Goya, Sylvia Plath, and Frida Kahlo all endured various mental illnesses throughout their lives, expressing their internal battles through their creations. While these artists mainly conveyed their suffering on paper or canvas, others lashed out in different areas of their lives. 

Thanks to social media’s microscopic lens into celebrities’ lives, secrets, and mistakes, separating the art and the artist is a never-ending ethical struggle. Fortunately for the reputations of Pablo Picasso, Paul Gaugin, Auguste Rodin, and Caravaggio, word of mouth was just about the only way the public found out about their wrongdoings. 

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, mononymously known as Caravaggio, was a Baroque painter whose work embodies chiaroscuro and tenebrism techniques and embraces subjects like religion and mythology. Some of his most famous paintings include Judith Beheading Holofernes (1599), The Incredulity of Saint Thomas (1602), Boy with a Basket of Fruit (1593), and Saint Jerome Writing (1606). While undeniably a luminous talent, Caravaggio’s complex and tumultuous personal life juxtaposed with his artistic brilliance.

Born in 1571 in Milan, Italy, Caravaggio grew up in a middle-class family. After his father died in 1577, he and his family moved to a town in Lombardy called Caravaggio—the origin of his artistic name. Early in his career, Caravaggio was an apprentice for Simone Peterzano, an Italian Mannerist painter. After learning Peterzano’s techniques and gaining the foundational knowledge for his artistic vocation, Caravaggio relocated to Rome in the early 1590s, where he would spend most of his career. After murdering a man in 1606, he fled Rome and became a fugitive to avoid the police. He died just four years later, at age 38; his official cause of death is disputable.

While some artists moved to Rome to gain more knowledge of art and experience the fervor surrounding the Renaissance Movement, Caravaggio’s move to Rome had ulterior motives.

Before stepping foot in Rome, Caravaggio got a running start on his problematic life, saturated with impulsive decisions and unpredictable actions. After beating a police officer and attacking several men in the streets of Milan, Caravaggio found it a perfect time to pack his bags and flee to Rome, gaining a clean—but short-lived—legal slate.

Upon his arrival, he managed to secure a job with Cavalier d’Arpino—the Pope’s favorite painter—at the artist’s workshop; this was one of Caravaggio’s first of many connections to powerful religious figures in Rome. While working for d’Arpino, Caravaggio continued painting and prevailed in his artistic journey, building a reputation as a prolific painter and a force not to be reckoned with.

Italy in the 1500s and early 1600s enjoyed one of history's highest concentrations of brilliant painters. That said, the artistic industry during this era was also highly saturated with aspiring artists trying to make a name for themselves. Caravaggio’s work was and continues to be impressive and beautifully painful, depicting Christ and other Biblical characters in some of the most distraught scenes. This niche and his outstanding embodiment of tenebrism were the central reasons for his success. With many other small artists toiling to put together a successful career, Caravaggio’s triumphs and crimes burned a target on his back.

Giovanni Baglione, a fellow Baroque Italian painter, claimed Caravaggio was trying to cause ruin to his career through libel. Unfortunately for Caravaggio, Baglione’s claim seemed to be a sound one. In 1603, Caravaggio wrote a satirical poem dedicated to Baglione, filled with anything but respect and admiration. The court ruled in favor of Baglione, and Caravaggio served two weeks in jail. Only a few years into his new life in Rome, Caravaggio effortlessly became the city’s nuisance.

Other instances that labeled Caravaggio as the town’s troublemaker included his beating of a nobleman with a golf club, throwing a plate of artichokes at a waiter, and breaking the shutters of the home he was renting. In 1606, Caravaggio was rumored to have killed a man named Ranuccio Tomassoni over a tennis match. However, in 2002, historians concluded the murder had actually been over a quarrel involving a female prostitute, and Caravaggio killed Tomassoni while attempting to castrate him. As a result, the Pope sentenced him to death. In typical Caravaggio fashion, he fled the city to avoid justice.

Rome has been the headquarters of Catholic Christianity for nearly two millennia. As such, most Romans in the late 1500s and early 1600s prioritized religion over everything. The primacy of the Catholic Church, at the zenith of its influence during this time, is clearly evidenced in the art of the time. Most of Caravaggio’s work points to a religious symbol, person, or message. He was a dedicated yet hypocritical Catholic who, after clocking in his hours as an artist, would take to the streets, wielding his perdurable anguish. 

During his brief residency in Rome, Caravaggio befriended Archbishop Borromeo, a highly influential religious figure in the early 17th century. For historical context, Italy saw a huge influx of Catholics at this time. Subsequently, congregations ballooned in size, and the church wanted to ensure that cathedrals appealed to new worshippers. The Vatican commissioned talented and world-renowned artists like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Titian to embellish the churches’ walls during the High Renaissance period. While Caravaggio was not considered a High Renaissance painter himself, he too was hired to lend his hand to the beauty of the church. His ties with religious patrons in Rome accelerated his artistic and pseudo-political career.

Archbishop Borromeo’s ecclesiastical and political influence was strong, but Caravaggio’s ambition for power was stronger. 

Borromeo and Caravaggio’s friendship was fostered by sharing incredibly radical ideals—even judged by 17th-century standards. Both men agreed that tournaments, masquerades, jousts, and dances should be banned and that men and women should be still more segregated in society. When Borromeo implemented these extremist policies, the public immediately revolted and refused to follow such orders. When Borromeo relented, revoking his rulings to mollify the outraged populace, Caravaggio spiraled into a manic, destructive episode. Nonetheless, he maintained cordial relations with the Archbishop and Cardinal Francesco Maria Bourbon del Monte—with whom Caravaggio lived for several years—to maintain his powerful connections that let him off the hook with the authorities.

Within his 38 years of life, Caravaggio committed additional crimes to those previously mentioned. 

His sexuality was debatable, but most historians declare Caravaggio to have been bisexual. One reason for this declaration is due to his sexual relations with 13-year-old Chieko di Caravaggio. Chieko often modeled and assisted Caravaggio with his paintings, spending countless hours together. It is important to note that, in 17th-century Rome, pedophilia was less of a moral violation than homosexuality. 

Caravaggio continued with his life as Rome’s street scoundrel. In the name of pride, Caravaggio bashed a man’s head in the middle of the street. The victim wanted to marry a woman who often modeled for Caravaggio but was denied the proposal and immediately blamed Caravaggio. The man insulted Caravaggio by implying the mother would let her daughter model for a scum like Caravaggio but not marry a respectable man like himself. To the man’s dismay, the woman’s mother ran to Caravaggio, telling him the distasteful words uttered in Caravaggio’s name. Consequently, he bashed the man’s head in the middle of the street without as much as a slap on the wrist, thanks to his ties with Cardinal Francesco Maria Bourdon del Monte.

Caravaggio was a quintessentially great artist; his skill set was prolific, and his work has outlived him for centuries, inspiring countless generations. However, that is all he exemplifies: a great painter. He was, by all accounts, a terrible person. Caravaggio undoubtedly suffered from a mental illness that fueled his violent outbreaks and narcissistic tendencies that granted him his (mostly) jail-free life. Setting himself above other artists and Romans through social status and intimidation, Caravaggio’s ego overpowers his artistic brilliance, soiling it with brawls, schemes, and crimes. It begs the question: are we, as the viewers, allowed to applaud his and other self-destructive artists’ works, knowing their unruly past? 

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