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Probable self-portrait
[1][2][3] of Francisco Zurbarán, c. 1635-1640.
'Francisco de Zurbarán' (
November 7 1598 –
August 27 1664) was a
Spanish painter. He is known primarily for his religious paintings depicting monks, nuns, and martyrs, and for his
still-lifes. Zurbarán gained the nickname 'Spanish Caravaggio', owing to the forcible, realistic use of
chiaroscuro in which he excelled.
Early life
He was born at
Fuente de Cantos in
Extremadura, the son of Luis Zurbarán, a haberdasher, and his wife, Isabel Márquez. In childhood he set about imitating objects with
charcoal. In 1614 his father sent him to
Seville to apprentice for three years with Pedro Díaz de Villanueva, an artist of whom very little is known.
[4]
Style
It is unknown whether Zurbarán had the opportunity to copy the paintings of
Michelangelo da Caravaggio; at any rate, he adopted Caravaggio's realistic use of chiaroscuro. The painter who may have had the greatest influence on his characteristically severe compositions was
Juan Sánchez Cotán.
[5] Polychrome sculpture—which by the time of Zurbarán's apprenticeship had reached a level of sophistication in Seville that surpassed that of the local painters—provided another important stylistic model for the young artist; the work of
Juan Martínez Montañés is especially close to Zurbarán's in spirit.
[5]
He painted directly from nature, and he made great use of the lay-figure in the study of draperies, in which he was particularly proficient. He had a special gift for white draperies; as a consequence, the houses of the white-robed
Carthusians are abundant in his paintings. To these rigid methods, Zurbarán is said to have adhered throughout his career, which was prosperous, wholly confined to Spain, and varied by few incidents beyond those of his daily labour. His subjects were mostly severe and ascetic religious vigils, the spirit chastising the flesh into subjection, the compositions often reduced to a single figure. The style is more reserved and chastened than Caravaggio's, the tone of color often quite bluish. Exceptional effects are attained by the precisely finished foregrounds, massed out largely in light and shade.
Later life
While in Seville, Zurbarán married Leonor de Jordera, by whom he had several children. Towards
1630 he was appointed painter to
Philip IV; and there is a story that on one occasion the sovereign laid his hand on the artist's shoulder, saying "Painter to the king, king of painters." After 1640 his austere, harsh, hard edged style was unfavorably compared to the sentimental religiosity of
Murillo and Zurbarán’s reputation declined. It was only in 1658, late in Zurbarán’s life that he moved to
Madrid in search of work and renewed his contact with
Velazquez. Zurbarán died in poverty and obscurity.
Artistic Legacy
''Christ and the Virgin in the House at Nazareth.''
In 1627 he painted the great
altarpiece of
St. Thomas Aquinas, now in the
Seville museum; it was executed for the church of the college of that saint there. This is Zurbarán's largest composition, containing figures of
Christ, the
Madonna, various
saints,
Charles V with
knights, and
Archbishop Deza (founder of the college) with monks and servitors, all the principal personages being more than life-size. It had been preceded by numerous pictures of the screen of
St. Peter Nolasco in the cathedral.
In
Santa Maria de Guadalupe he painted various large pictures, eight of which relate to the history of
St. Jerome; and in the church of
Saint Paul, Seville, a famous figure of the Crucified Saviour, in
grisaille, creating an illusion of
marble. In
1633 he finished the paintings of the high altar of the Carthusians in
Jerez. In the palace of
Buenretiro, Madrid are four large canvases representing the
Labours of
Hercules, an unusual instance of non-Christian subjects from the hand of Zurbarán. A fine example of his work is in the
National Gallery,
London: a whole-length, life-sized figure of a kneeling Franciscan holding a skull. His principal scholars were
Bernabe de Ayala and the brothers Polanco.
Gallery
Notes
1. http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/z/zurbaran/2/st_luke.html
2. http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0951-0788(194512)87%3A513%3C302%3ANFOZ%3E2.0.CO%3B2-R
3. http://www.answers.com/topic/francisco-zurbar-n
4. Gállego and Gudiol, 1987, p. 13.
5. Gállego and Gudiol, 1987, p. 15.
6. Gállego and Gudiol, 1987, p. 15.
References
★ Gállego, Julián; Gudiol, José (1987). ''Zurbarán''. London: Alpine Fine Arts Collection, Ltd. ISBN 0-88168-115-6
★
External links
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