The Shadowed Genius: Caravaggio and the Dawn of Baroque Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, a name synonymous with drama, darkness, and revolutionary technique, remains one of the most compelling figures in art history. Born in Milan in 1571 to a family of artists – his father was a draper – Caravaggio’s early life is shrouded in some mystery, though it's believed he received a basic apprenticeship under his father before being formally trained as a painter by Simone Peterzano. He arrived in Rome around 1592, a city teeming with artistic patronage and ambition, and quickly established himself…