Turning Ordinary People into Extraordinary Art

Not only did Caravaggio cast models off the streets, but he often referenced his own image as displayed in The Musicians. In creating this piece, Caravaggio drew reference from just two live models at different angles as well as himself which can be seen in the third figure from the right. 

Caravaggio’s work challenged conventions with his use of live and very ordinary models. Many of Caravaggio’s work depicted religious narratives that were created in reference to regular people. The use of ordinary live models in this context was revolutionary compared to the idealized figures used in the paintings of his contemporaries. He reduced biblical tales to ordinary human actions. Due to this, his work was often received negatively by some critics and some of his earliest commissions were rejected yet others admired the idea of ordinary people being cast in a heavenly light. The use of ordinary people as models is another one of Caravaggio's revolutionary contributions to art.