Paul Troger (1698-1762) was an Austrian painter whose highly dramatic style and use of light colors, particularly in his frescoes, dominated Austrian painting about the middle of the 18th century and profoundly influenced succeeding generations.

Paul Troger was born on Oct. 30, 1698, at Welsberg, near Zell, in the Tirol. There, at the age of 16, under the patronage of the Firmian family, he studied art with Giuseppe Alberti. Then, with the help of the prince-bishop of Gurk, Troger went to Venice, where he was influenced by the new developments in painting sparked by Giovanni Battista Piazzetta, Sebastiano Ricci, and Giovanni Battista Pittoni. Troger also studied in Rome, Naples, and Bologna, the leading artistic centers of Italy at the time, where the works of the Caracci, Luca Giordano, and Giuseppe Maria Crespi were also important for his development.

On his return to Austria, Troger first worked at Salzburg. He then moved...