Giovanni Battista Crescenzi (1577–1635) was an Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 painter and architect of the early-Baroque

Baroque

The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...

 period, active in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

 and Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, where he helped decorate the pantheon of the Spanish kings at El Escorial

El Escorial

The Royal Seat of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is a historical residence of the king of Spain, in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, about 45 kilometres northwest of the capital, Madrid, in Spain. It is one of the Spanish royal sites and functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and...

.

He rose to prominence as an artist during the reign of Pope Paul V

Pope Paul V

-Theology:Paul met with Galileo Galilei in 1616 after Cardinal Bellarmine had, on his orders, warned Galileo not to hold or defend the heliocentric ideas of Copernicus. Whether there was also an order not to teach those ideas in any way has been a matter for controversy...

, but by 1617 had moved to Madrid, and from 1620 on, he was active in El Escorial. Philip III of Spain

Philip III of Spain

Philip III , also known as Philip the Pious, was the King of Spain and King of Portugal and the Algarves, where he ruled as Philip II , from 1598 until his death...

 awarded him the title of Marchese de la Torre, Knight of Santiago.

His family was a prominent Roman family. His brother, Pier Paolo Crescenzi

Pier Paolo Crescenzi

Pier Paolo Crescenzi was an Italian Catholic Cardinal.Crescenzi was born in 1572, the son of Virgilio Crescenzi, Baron of Montorio, and Costanza, of the Marquises of Drago. He was the brother of artist Giovanni Battista Crescenzi...

, was a cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

. He married Anna Massima, and his son, Alessandro Agostino, became cardinal in 1675, while a distant nephew, Marcello, became cardinal in 1743. Among his pupils were Bartolomeo Cavarozzi

Bartolomeo Cavarozzi

Bartolomeo Cavarozzi was an Italian caravaggisti painter of the Baroque period active in Spain, alongside his master Giovanni Battista Crescenzi....

, Juan Fernández

Juan Fernández

Juan Fernández was a Spanish explorer and navigator in the Pacific regions of the Viceroyalty of Peru and Captaincy General of Chile west of colonial South America.-Discoveries and theories:Juan Fernández Islands...

, and Antonio de Pereda

Antonio de Pereda

Antonio de Pereda was a Spanish Baroque-era painter, best known for his still lifes. Pereda was born in Valladolid. He was the eldest of three brothers from an artistic family. His father, mother and two brothers were all painters. He was educated in Madrid by Pedro de las Cuevas and was taken...

.