Brief Biography-Agostino Tassi was a painter of sea views, mythology, and frescoes. He was born in Perugia under his real family name of Buonamici; There are four public accounts of his date of birth, 1565, 1566, 1578 and 1580; 1578 is generally the correct date. He first studied art in Bologna and completed his studies in Rome at the atelier of Paul Bril. The works of Bril strongly influenced him, most notably his landscapes. His reputation improved in Genoa, where he worked with Ventura Salimbeni on frescoes. He later worked with Orazio Gentileschi in Rome on many of his architectural illusionistic murals, some of which Pope Paul V commissioned.
In Florence, he was made a galley enslaved person due to an unknown crime; during this time, he was allowed to produce many sea view scenes on canvas. Later, he got convicted of raping Artemisia Gentileschi and received a two-year sentence which he never served. One of his most noted students was Claude Lorrain.