Around the turn of the 15th to 16th century, he appears to have spent time in Italy, where he came in contact with Italian Renaissance art and with the recently developed use of perspective in painting.
Ratgeb had developed a distinctive personal expressive style, visibly influenced by artists such as Albrecht Dürer, Matthias Grünewald and Hieronymus Bosch.
After the suppression of the rebellion, he was arrested, accused of high treason ("because of the Peasant War and on behalf of Duke Ulrich") and finally executed in Pforzheim in 1526, by being torn apart by four horses.
In the 20th century, several historical novels were written about his life: Jörg Ratgeb – Painter is a 1978 East German drama film directed by Bernhard Stephan.
In 2004, the artist Hans Kloss (painter) [de] painted a large four-part altarpiece depicting Ratgeb's life and death.