How did Caravaggio help introduce Baroque painting?

Caravaggio was a pivotal figure in the transition from the late 16th-century Mannerist style to the Baroque period. By the 1590s, he decisively broke with the elegant, artificial conventions of his time, helping to usher in a new era of naturalism and emotional intensity.1

His contributions to Baroque painting included:

• Tenebrism and Chiaroscuro: Caravaggio popularized tenebrism, a technique utilizing extreme contrasts of light and dark to create dramatic, three-dimensional effects. He used this innovative chiaroscuro to emphasize specific details, such as facial expressions or gestures, heightening the emotional impact of his work.213
• Visceral Realism: Unlike his contemporaries, he depicted sacred Bible stories as immediate, human dramas. He often used plebeian models and depicted figures with realistic, sometimes gritty details—such as ragged clothing or dirty feet—to emphasize their common humanity.34
• Dramatic Staging: By setting sacred events in the present day and focusing on intense, sincere human emotion, Caravaggio established a sense of dramatic feeling that became a hallmark of the Baroque style.34

Although he had no direct pupils, his influence, known as "Caravaggism," became a dominant force in Rome and across Western art.34