The Venetian painter Jacopo Tintoretto (1518–1594) is an ambiguous figure in the history of art. Critics and writers such as Vasari, Ruskin and Sartre all placed him in opposition to the established artistic practice of his time, noting that he had abandoned the values that typified the venerable Venetian Renaissance tradition. He was even expelled as an apprentice from the workshop of Titian. This informative and generously illustrated book offers a long-overdue re-evaluation of Tintoretto’s unique work and entertaining life.

A wonderfully informative and entertaining new study of the painter. The first full-length account of the artists life and work to appear in English for nearly 50 years. * Sunday Telegraph Magazine *
Nichols . . . is at pains to point out how far this at once exhilarating and exasperating painter went against the Venetian grain. Nichols persuasively shows how he cultivated poverty, in terms of technique, iconography and professional identity . . . a good book. * The Independent *
By relating the pictures to the changes in cinquecento Venice, Nichols identifies the nature of and suggests the reasons for Tintorettos unorthodox style. The many, excellent illustrations in Tintoretto can be admired for their own sake, but the text demands to be closely read. * Sunday Times *
Deeply perceptive in interpretation -- Brian Sewell, Books of the Year * Evening Standard *
[An] excellent book . . . both engaging and most enlightening. * Times Literary Supplement *
Much of the best modern scholarship on the subject is incorporated into an argument which is well presented and enriched with many original and intelligent observations. * Burlington Magazine *

Tom Nichols is Senior Research Fellow at the University of Glasgow. His previous books include Titian and the End of the Venetian Renaissance (2013) and Giorgione’s Ambiguity (2020), both published by Reaktion.