During which period did small scale statuettes for private patrons develop ?
Even under Ottoman rule , Byzantine traditions in icon - painting and other small - scale arts survived , especially in the Venetian - ruled Crete and Rhodes , where a " post - Byzantine " style under increasing Western influence survived for a further two centuries , producing artists including El Greco whose training was in the Cretan School which was the most vigorous post-Byzantine school , exporting great numbers of icons to Europe .