Bassano, Jacopo [key], c.1515–1592, Venetian painter, whose original name was Jacopo, or Giacomo, da Ponte, b. Bassano, Italy. Bassano first studied with his father, Francesco da Ponte, and then went to Venice. There he was influenced by Titian and Lorenzo Lotto, but he soon evolved a more turbulent mannerist style. Returning to Bassano c.1540, he established a thriving workshop producing works primarily on biblical themes. Into his paintings, which were characterized by a dramatic intensity, he introduced vignettes of country life. He was among the first Italian painters to depict animals, farmhouses, and landscapes. Jacopo's works include Jacob's Return to Canaan (Ducal Palace, Venice); Dives and Lazarus (Cleveland Mus.); Acteon and the Nymphs (Art Inst., Chicago); Annunciation to the Shepherds (National Gall. of Art, Washington, D.C.).
Of Jacopo's four sons, his most worthy followers were Francesco Bassano, 1549–92, whose biblical and pastoral scenes were similar in style to his father's, and Leandro Bassano, 1558–1623, who painted altarpieces and portraits as well as pastoral genre. The Cleveland Museum of Art has his Pietà.
See study of Jacopo Bassano by P. Zampetti (tr. 1958).
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