Sixteenth-century art focused on individual artistic styles, which helped many painters develop key characteristics in their works. The end of the High Renaissance and the turn towards what would later be defined as the Baroque style mark this era. The Marriage of Cupid and Psyche by Andrea Schiavone shows the perfect blend between different characteristics of the master painters before him and the creation of his own style. The combination shown in his depiction of the Marriage of Cupid and Psyche is that of Titian and Parmigianino, both great master painters of the Renaissance. He combines the radical brushwork of Titian with the strangely serpentine forms of Parmigianino to reinforce his own stylistic mannerisms. The Dalmatian artist examined paintings and engravings from across central and northern Italy for inspiration. Throughout his career as an artist, Schiavone remained grounded in the techniques and coloristic virtuosity of Venetian Mannerist painting. Andrea Schiavone designed a strategy to distinguish himself from the master painters before him. This style is marked by a sense of incompleteness and feathery brushwork. The painting The Marriage of Love and Psyche shows Schiavone at his best because he is the perfect example of the harmony between Titian and Parmigianino. The sinuous lines depicted in the painting give it plenty of sex appeal, while his intensive handling of paint keeps it from being cloying. In this work, Schiavone forces you to move beyond accepted notions of what is good and focus instead on the beauty that transcends good and evil. The painting itself is of Venetian origin, dating from 1550. It is composed of oil on wood and was originally octagonal in shape. The corners have been added...... middle of paper ...... "Part 3." In Lives of the artists / Giorgio Vasari. 2nd ed. New York: Noonday Press, 1958. Ekserdjian, David. Parmigianino. New Haven [Connecticut: Yale University Press, 2006. Goldner, George R., Lee Hendrix, Gloria Williams Sander, NJL Turner, and Carol Plazzotta. “Andrea Schiavone.” In European drawings: catalog of collections. Malibu, California: J. Paul Getty Museum, 1988. 114. Lindsay, Jack and Lucius Apuleius. “IV-VI.” In Apuleius and The Golden Ass. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1979. 88-148 “Castello di San Salvatore.” San Salvatore Castle. http://www.castellosansalvatore.it/castellosansalvatore/default.asp (accessed April 29, 2011).Carlo Ridolfi. The Maraviglie dell'arte. Venice, 1648, part 1, p.237Davis, Bruce. Mannerist paintings: international style in the 16th century. Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1988