Giovanni Battista Piazzetta

Happy Birthday Giovanni Battista Piazzetta!! Born in 1682, Venetian painter Piazzetti was the son of a woodcarver. He studied with Crespi in Bologna, gaining from him an interest in genre painting. He worked deliberately and slow, so he created comparatively few paintings in his lifetime. He began with Rembrandt's influence, painting with deep chiaroscuro, genre scenes such as the Shepherd Boy below, evolving into the free flowing style of Rococo.  There is some speculation thta the "Shepherd Boy" represents the Shepherd Jesus as a young boy.