Caravaggio

Caravaggio had a tough life at age 6 he became orphan when an illness killed his entire family.  Orphaned and broke he searched for work and ended up being an assistant to many painters whom he was much more talented then.  When Caravaggio was 11 years old Milan and began apprenticing with the painter Simone Peterzano. Soon after he found his way to Rome.                                                    

Caravaggio talents were soon recognized by the Church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome.  The           Church asked him to paint the walls of the church with numerous biblical scenes. The 3 resulting works, "St. Matthew and the Angel," "The calling of St. Matthew." and "the Martyrdom of St. Matthew," were finished in 1601, and together showed Caravaggio's remarkable range as an artist.

What the church did not realize until after the painting were complete was that the faces in these biblical scene's are criminals, prostitutes,  beggars and thieves whom he encountered on the streets of Rome.  This gets him into some trouble with the pope when the rest of the church goers caught on to Caravaggio's tricks.  The pope had issued the death of Caravaggio.  It's very ironic how Caravaggio painted criminals inside a church as characters in biblical scene's because these are "sinful" people portraying Saints and angles.  I am a fan of Caravaggio's work and I think its hilarious that he painted prostitutes in a church.  You go Caravaggio, respect to you for doing the unthinkable.

Source: http://www.biography.com