Caravaggio: Making a name for himself in Rome

The recent Caravaggio 2025 Exhibition at Palazzo Barberini in Rome curated the offerings on show into four major categories:(i) Making a Name in Rome; (ii) Invigorating the Dark Shadows; (iii) The Sacred and the Tragic Between Rome and Naples; and (iv) Endgame. I will arrange the Caravaggio paintings that I have personally seen over the course of the past year accordingly, beginning (in this post) with the first category.

Caravaggio was born in Milan but his family moved to Caravaggio, a little town in the north of Italy, to escape the plague (At this time the commune of Caravaggio was considered Venetian territory.). Caravaggio studied painting during his youth and his teacher was Simone Peterzano, one of the last students of the Venetian great Titian.

Caravaggio left his hometown in 1592 and made his way to Milan. Once there, he found it to be a "dog-eat-dog" environment and he got off to a quite rocky start. He was, like many other aspiring painters, forced to parade around the Piazza Navona with his works hung around him -- in sandwich-board fashion -- hoping that someone would notice his work and favor him with their patronage. 

According to Caravaggio 2025, starting in the summer of his arrival, Caravaggio moved to the workshop of the painter Guiseppe Cesari d'Arpino where he was "engaged in painting flowers and fruits." The partnership ended abruptly after 8 months. The work he did at d'Arpino's shop is reflected in the prominence of fruits and/or leaves in many of Caravaggio's early paintings.

Caravaggio's hunt for a patron bore fruit when he was "discovered" by Cardinal Francisco Maria del Monte, a close ally of the Medici family and, at that time, residing in the nearby Medici Palace. Based on the Cardinal's invitation, Caravaggio moved into the upper floors of the palace and produced most of his early works therein.

Now onto some of those early works.

One of Caravaggio's earliest paintings from his time in Rome is Boy Peeling Fruit. According to sources cited by the Caravaggio 2025 exhibition, this piece was painted during the time that Caravaggio stayed with Monsignor Pandolfo Pucci, a prelate from Recanati. The first reliable record of this piece's provenance was its mention in the inventory of James II of England.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio,
Boy Peeling Fruit, c. 1592 - 93
(Royal Collection Trust, UK; viewed at
Caravaggio 2025 exhibition, 7/18/25)

According to Dr Ruggiero (a Renaissance expert), Caravaggio fell ill and did a self-portrait (Sick Bacchus) to pass the time. While the grapes and laurel conjures up Bacchus to one's senses, Dr. Ruggiero points out that the laurel is made from Ivy -- rather than  grape -- leaves. In the ancient world, poets were pale (because of the time they spent indoors) and wore ivy crowns. This, then, could have been Caravaggio depicting himself as a visual poet (painter).

Most art at this time still looked like the art of Michelangelo -- bright colors of superhuman forms -- but the art in Sick Bacchus was markedly different. As Dr. Ruggiero described it, the composition was right in your face with the table in the foreground, the subject in the mid-ground, and no background to speak of. Caravaggio learned this compositional style from Venetian artists.

There is some confusion around this painting. According to Caravaggio.com, the painter completed this work in 1593 while he was working in d'Arpino's studio. According to one source he was recovering from a bout of malaria while another says that he was a victim of a kick from a horse. The Journal of the Royal Society attributes the painter's pallor to the effects of jaundice. Dr. Ruggiero agrees with the 1593 date. Villa Borghese, the home of the painting, lists the date as 1595 while the Caravaggio 2025 exhibit lists it as 1595 - 96. 

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio,
Self portrait as Bacchus (known as Sick Bacchus),
c. 1593
(Galleria Borghese, Rome; viewed at
Caravaggio 2025 exhibition, 7/18/25)

While Boy Bitten by a Lizard does not yet manifest Caravaggio's signature chiaroscuoro, it does capture his ability to register a single point in time and centers flowers and leaves in a prominent still life. 

This painting was, according to Caravaggio's biographers, most certainly made for the open market, rather than for a specific patron. Many early 17th century copies of this painting exist "including a high-quality replica" at the Fondazione Longhi (Florence) which is thought to some to be from the hands of Caravaggio himself.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio,
Boy Bitten by a Lizard, c. 1594 - 95
(National Gallery, London; viewed in situ
12/5/24)

The model for Baccus (1595 - 1597) is Mario Minniti, a young Sicilian painter with whom Caravaggio, according to Dr. Ruggerio, had an amorous relationship. We see a bed sheet spread over the model’s shoulder Toga-like, and the folded-over mattress for his repose. We see the flush in his cheeks from the drinking and bubbles in the decanter from the freshly poured wine. We see ripe fruits with brilliant colors and the waves in the wine glass showing either recently poured wine or liquid movement after a recent swirl.The folds of the model’s shirt sleeve can be seen through the glass stem which the model is holding in the approved manner.

Cardinal Del Monte gifted the painting to Ferdinand I de Medici. It was found in the storage of the Uffizi in 1916.

The Fortune Teller "portrays a cunning Gypsy as she reads the palm of a naive young fellow, who, gazing into the woman's face, fails to realize that she is about to steal his precious ring." This light, bright painting is almost the antithesis of the Caravaggio works that we have come to know and love. This painting was part of Cardinal Monte's collection and was subsequently acquired by Carlo Emanuele Pio (along with St John the Baptist) in 1628.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, Fortune Teller, c. 1596 - 97
(Musei Capitolini - Pinacoteca Capitolina, Rome; viewed at
Caravaggio 2025 exhibition, 7/18/25)

Similar to Fortune Teller in both airiness and underlying lack of morals, The Cardsharps was one of the first Caravaggio's to be purchased by Cardinal Monte. Referred to as The Game in early sources, this painting was acquired by Cardinal Antonio Barberini upon Monte's death.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, The Cardsharps, 
c. 1596 - 97
(Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, TX; viewed at
Caravaggio 2025 exhibition, 7/18/25)

Caravaggio painted from live models; he did not do any drawings or other preparatory work. If he was dissatisfied with a painting, or a part of a painting, he simply painted over the offending area. His backgrounds at this time were mostly neutral.

The model in The Musicians (called Concert at the Caravaggio 2025 exhibition) is Mario Minniti, a young Sicilian painter with whom Caravaggio, according to Dr. Ruggerio, had an amorous relationship. This painting was done for Cardinal Monte, the first of a number. Caravaggio is the figure in the background. 

This painting was also acquired by Cardinal Barberini upon Monte's death.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio,
The Musicians, 1597
(National Gallery, Washington, DC; viewed in situ
8/5/25)

Narcissus is the youngest painting in this category and breaks from the others with its dark background and, with reflection, foreground. According to Caravaggio 2025, this is "one of the most debated paintings in the Caravaggio catalogue." Those who initially attributed the painting to Caravaggio, gave a date of 1590 - 95 but, more recently, persons willing to attribute will give a date from 1597 - 99 while others question whether this is even a Caravaggio at all.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio,
Narcissus, 1597 - 99
(Gallerie Nazionale di Arte Antica,
Palazzo Barberini, Rome; viewed at
Caravaggio 2025 exhibition, 7/18/25)

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Up until this time, all of Caravaggio's commissions had been small and from private sources. His first major contract was in 1602 with the family of Cardinal Mateo Contarelli. The contract called for Caravaggio to paint the walls of the family chapel at San Luigi Dei Francesi. Carravagio was not supposed to paint the altarpiece (it was supposed to be a sculpture) but the family was so impressed with the work that he did on the walls that they asked him to do that also.

By this time Carravaggio had gained critical and popular acclaim. He followed up the Contrarelli Chapel with a commission for the Cerasi Chapel in Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome.

I will continue this series with the works falling into the category Invigorating the Dark Shadows.

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