Liss, Johann (1590c.-1631c.) - 1622c. Judith and Holophernes (National Gallery, London)
Johann Liss was a leading German Baroque painter of the 17th century, active mainly in Venice. He was born in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. After an initial education in his home state, he continued his studies with Hendrick Goltzius in Haarlem and Amsterdam. Around 1620 he traveled through Paris to Venice. He moved to Rome around 1620-2, and his first works there were influenced by the style of Caravaggio.
Although his earlier work was concerned with the contrasts of light and shade, his final move to Venice in the early 1620s modified his style and gave impetus to brilliant color and a spirited treatment of the painted surface. His loose brushstrokes is a precursor to the rococo styles of the Guardi brothers. This final style, along with that of other "foreign" painters residing in Venice, represent the first inroads of the Baroque style into the republic.
Liss fled to Verona to escape the Plague spreading in Venice, but succumbed there prematurely in 1629. His legacy is as a painter of both sensuous mythological and pious biblical subjects, a master of colors and Baroque painting. He was most influential to Venetian 18th century painters like Sebastiano Ricci, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo and Giovanni Piazzetta.
Liss, Johann (1590c.-1631c.) - 1622c. Judith and Holophernes (National Gallery, London)
Johann Liss was a leading German Baroque painter of the 17th century, active mainly in Venice. He was born in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. After an initial education in his home state, he continued his studies with Hendrick Goltzius in Haarlem and Amsterdam. Around 1620 he traveled through Paris to Venice. He moved to Rome around 1620-2, and his first works there were influenced by the style of Caravaggio.
Although his earlier work was concerned with the contrasts of light and shade, his final move to Venice in the early 1620s modified his style and gave impetus to brilliant color and a spirited treatment of the painted surface. His loose brushstrokes is a precursor to the rococo styles of the Guardi brothers. This final style, along with that of other "foreign" painters residing in Venice, represent the first inroads of the Baroque style into the republic.
Liss fled to Verona to escape the Plague spreading in Venice, but succumbed there prematurely in 1629. His legacy is as a painter of both sensuous mythological and pious biblical subjects, a master of colors and Baroque painting. He was most influential to Venetian 18th century painters like Sebastiano Ricci, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo and Giovanni Piazzetta.