Ludovico Carracci

Ludovico Carracci (April 21, 1555 – November 13, 1619) was an Italian painter, etcher, and printmaker who helped reinvigorate Italian art after Mannerism by founding an academy in Bologna in 1585. Along with his cousins Annibale Carracci and Agostino Carracci he is considered to be the founder of the Eclectic School of painting of the late 16th century in Italy.

He was born and died in Bologna. Ludovico apprenticed under Prospero Fontana in Bologna and traveled to Florence, Parma, and Venice before founding the Accademia degli Incamminati with his cousins Annibale Carracci and Agostino Carracci with Ludovico at its head. This academy was responsible for training some of the more notable artsists of the next generation, including Guido Reni and Domenichino, with studies focused on observation of nature, study of poses from life, and bold scale in drawing figures.

Ludovico's own are works are characterized by a strong mood envoked by broad gestures and flickering light that give a snese of spiritual emotion. His style would influence several Italian Baroque painters.