A Tuscan Sun in the Roman Baroque Pietro Berrettini, known to history as Pietro da Cortona, emerged from the rolling hills of Tuscany in 1596 to become a defining figure of the Italian Baroque. Born in the town that would lend him his more familiar name, Cortona possessed an innate artistic sensibility nurtured early on by training under Andrea Commodi in Florence. However, it was Rome – the pulsating heart of artistic innovation – that truly ignited his genius. Arriving around 1612/3, he entered the studio of Baccio Ciarpi, immersing himself in a world where illusion and drama were rapidly…