Francesco Bassano the Younger

Who was Francesco Bassano the Younger?

Francesco Bassano the Younger, also called Francesco Giambattista da Ponte or Francesco da Ponte the Younger, was an Italian painter of the Renaissance period.

He was born at Bassano del Grappa near Venice, the eldest son of Jacopo Bassano and grandson of Francesco da Ponte the Elder. He studied with his father and worked in the Bassano family workshop along with his three brothers, including Giambattista and Girolamo. He moved to Venice where he ran the branch of the family business, and where he was employed to paint a series of historical pictures in the Doge's Palace. But as he was prone to hypochondria and other ailments, he committed suicide by defenestration soon after his father's death in 1592. His third brother Leandro Bassano continued the family legacy of painting.