El GrecoAlthough El Greco is best known for his paintings, El Greco changed the world with his unique religious works, mythological works, and sculptures. El Greco is the greatest artist of the Renaissance because of his original art style and his view of art that was different from other artists. El Greco was born in an unknown town in Crete in 1541. El Greco's real artist and full birth name is Doménikos Theotokópoulos. His nickname, El Greco, comes from his birthplace, Crete. He signed all his paintings with his nickname which translates to “The Greek”. It was suspected that this was given to him by his fellow citizens because of his place of birth. El Greco spoke Spanish and Greek, which helped people understand his art. Although El Greco was ultimately one of the greatest and most influential artists of his time, he had no known formal training in art. El Greco studied under Titian and others like Tintoretto and Michelangelo who influenced his art as well as his birthplace and current artistic styles of the post-Byzantine era (getty). It is possible that El Greco had a wife, Jeronima de las Cuevas, a woman who lived with him. Although they were probably not a married couple, they had one child together, Jorge Manvel, who later followed in his father's footsteps and became a painter. El Greco was one of the first artists of his time to use the artistic style, mannerism. Mannerism is a 16th style of art in which the artist uses (in his art) elongated fingers, vaguely free brushwork, expressive lighting, and intelligent color choices (dictionary). El Greco was a precursor to Mannerism because many of Motley2's fellow artists had never attempted the style. El Greco's artistic style shows Spain's strong and deep Catholic faith, which can be seen...... middle of paper ......667, El Greco received many major commissions which have increased its popularity among many people. El Greco was heavily influenced by churchmen and influential members of Toledan society and by God when creating his religious masterpieces (Arctic). El Greco was one of the most influential artists of the late Renaissance thanks to his techniques, styles, and views on art. With the skills he learned he changed the art world through Mannerism, Cubism and Expressionism along with his different views and visions which greatly changed the art world.Motley4Works quoted "El Greco". Artble. np Web. March 29, 2014 "El Greco." The Getty. np, nd Web. March 25, 2014Encyclopedia of the Renaissance. New York: Scribner, 1999. Print. Population of the world. General, 2010. Print. “The Assumption of the Virgin. » Art Institute of Chicago. np Web. March 30 2014.