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The picture belongs to a group of scenes set inside a stable which Wouwerman began painting in 1655. This cycle is an exception in the painter`s output, which was mainly focused on outdoor scenes. Most of these stable views are based on the same compositional scheme: two-thirds of the panel is occupied by the dark interior of the stable, which opens out on the left towards a landscape painted in m
A portrait of a Venetian soldier wearing armor. He holds a baton in his right hand and his weapons in his left. Turned, he extends his arm toward the viewer, thus opening a third dimension in this composition strengthened by the force of his gaze. It has not been possible to confirm the identity of the sitter, but we must point out the similarity of this work's general composition to that of the p
Surrounded by angels, the Holy Family, with Saint Elizabeth and the infant Saint John, receive Saint Louis, King of France. The background combines architecture and curtains. This work is organized like a large stage set, using the infant Saint John and an adjacent lamb to invite the viewer to participate. The dynamic and complex composition with its brilliant and expansive colors recalls models f
Saint Mena extends his arms and raises his gaze to Heaven, refusing to worship the graven idol presented to him at the left of the composition. As a result, he was martyred and decapitated. His suffering occurred in the year 296, under the rule of Diocletian. It is indicated here by the sword held by the person who has seized the saint, and by the pliers in the basket, which were used to pull out
In this personification of the Virgin Mary as the Immaculate Conception, the protagonist, although still very youthful, is not as childlike as those of Zurbarán and Velázquez and lacks the descriptive and symbolic elements commonly found in earlier, undoubtedly archaic versions. Allusions to the litanies are omitted and artist reduces the image to the bare essentials: the young and s
These two canvases (The Adoration of the Magi, P1129 and The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, P1130) were part of a small altar piece in the convent of Los Angéles in Madrid, a work that also included The Annunciation (P1128). The present canvases are typical of the mature style of this artist, who made masterly use of a range of warm colours applied with an extremely free brushstroke i
Like many other works by Andrea di Lione, Jacob’s journey, c.1635-65, was previously attributed to Genoese painter Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione (Il Grechetto). It is one of the most successful landscapes with figures by Lione, who first studied with battle painter Aniello Falcone (1607-1656) and later developed a more bucolic manner under the influence of Castiglione, whom he lived alongside in
Mariana of Austria, Queen Consort between 1665 and 1675, talks to the Jesuit priest Nithard, her confessor and confidant, in the presence of her son Charles II, still a minor. The scene takes place in a room in the Buen Retiro Palace –on the left we see a Hieronymite monk– decorated by the painter with works related to Velazquez and King Philip IV: Las Meninas, the equestrian portraits of Philip I
In its present state the painting reveals two different phases of creation. The apparent age of the sitter and the notable similarities with his appearance in Velázquez`s portrait of the elderly Philip IV in the Museo del Prado (P01185) have meant that this painting is generally dated to the 1650s. However, technical studies have revealed important changes, primarily affecting the head and
These two canvases (The Adoration of the Magi, P1129 and The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, P1130) were part of a small altar piece in the convent of Los Angéles in Madrid, a work that also included The Annunciation (P1128). The present canvases are typical of the mature style of this artist, who made masterly use of a range of warm colours applied with an extremely free brushstroke i
In a landscape with classical ruins that allude to the defeat of paganism, the Christ Child tends a lamb. Murillo based this image on a print by Stefano della Bella (1610-1664), while making use of his outstanding ability to depict children to create one of the most effective depictions of the parable of the Good Shepherd.
This painting and its companion, The Patrician’s Dream (P994), are among Murillo’s most renowned works. The two arched works were intended to hang beneath a small dome in the recently remodeled Sevillian church of Santa María la Blanca in 1665, and they narrate the story of the founding of the Roman basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore as succinctly set out in the Roman Breviary’s information a
This is an extraordinary example of the eventful life of many royal portraits during the Siglo de Oro, and it shows just how much those paintings, rather than immutable artworks, were objects with a representative function and could thus be altered depending on the use they were assigned at any given time. The present bust portrait depicts King Philp IV (1605-1665) in the mid 1620s, when he was ju
The daughter of Henri IV of France and Marie de Médicis, Isabel de Borbón (1603-1644) was the first wife of Philip IV and the mother of Prince Baltasar Carlos and María Teresa of Austria. In Villandrando’s portrait, painted a year before Isabel became Queen of Spain, she wears a stiff, sumptuous dress that emphasises her presence and royal status. Although Spanish in cut, the
Leaning on a classical ruin, Saint Joseph looks at the Virgin Mary with the Christ Child in her lap. Jesus, in turn, is receiving a roll with the words Ecce Agnus Dei from Saint John. This Latin inscription meaning Lamb of God refers to the Passion of Christ, who sacrifices himself, just as lambs were sacrified by the Jews, in order to save humanity from sin. The oak tree standing behind the main
Some villagers smoke and chat at the door of a tavern. A woman is coming out the door, carrying the food they were waiting for. On the right, some peasants chat in a friendly manner. The church of a nearby village is visible in the background, and across the plains, another town is visible. Here, Teniers had Lucas van Uden paint the landscape. The latter used a warm evening light derived from his
This is one of the most successful of this painter´s many known Immaculate Conceptions, thanks to its serenity and exquisite beauty. His inventive capacity is continually visible in the vast repertoire of variations he brings to his treatment of a single religious subject. The symbols of the Marian litany are always present, but the angels´ heads are never the same, nor do their groups
Several aspects of this undated work indicate it was painted during the transition between the first and second halves of the 17th century. It clearly draws on Van der Hamen but some smaller details appear to foreshadow the baroque tendencies explored by Pereda in that century’s sixth decade, when Philip IV’s (1621-1665) reign was beginning to decline. And as Pérez Sánchez pointed ou
