c. 370 B.C.E.–Early third century B.C.E.

Painter

Greece's Greatest Painter.

Apelles was probably the greatest artist in the Greek world, though all that survives are descriptions of his works. He gained fame as the portrait artist of choice to some of the most powerful men in the ancient world, including Philip of Macedon, Alexander the Great, and Ptolemy I in Egypt. He placed great emphasis on precise line drawing, and every day he made a point of practicing it to maintain his skill. He also used a transparent varnish to preserve his paintings. The exact formula of the varnish is not known, but the word that the historian Pliny the Elder used for it was atramentum (black lacquer) which indicates that it darkened his colors and probably softened them.

Training.

Apelles was born either on the island of Cos, or on the Asia Minor...