The artist, who blended religious figures with harsh color transitions, gradually became popular, and by the time of his death, he was a well-known name among the courtiers, nobles, and wealthy people of the capital.
Zurbaran, a 17th-century Spanish painter, was appointed official royal painter at the Spanish Royal court in the 1630s. Even though he was a court painter, he was extremely poor when he died. King Philip IV of Spain put his hand on Zurbaran's shoulder and introduced the painter to the courtiers, saying, "The king's painter and the king of painters." The artist, who blended religious figures with harsh color transitions, gradually became popular, and by the time of his death, he was a well-known name among the courtiers, nobles, and wealthy people of the capital.
Who is Zurbaran?
Spanish Baroque period painter Francisco De Zurbaran was born in 1598 in Fuente de Cantos, Extremadura. His drawings with charcoal during his childhood attracted attention. In 1614, his father sent him to Seville to apprentice for three years with Pedro Díaz de Villanueva, a little-known artist.
Francisco de Zurbarán (7 November 1598 – 27 August 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 forceful use of chiaroscuro in which he excelled.
In 1626, he signed a contract with the Dominican monastery of San Pablo el Real in Seville to paint 21 paintings in eight months. Fourteen of the paintings depicted the life of Saint Dominic; the others represented Saint Bonaventura, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Saint Dominic, and the four Doctors of the Church.
In 1629, Seville's notables invited Zurbarán to settle permanently in the city because his paintings had increased the reputation of Seville and brought fame to the city. He accepted the invitation and moved to Seville with his wife Beatriz de Morales and eight assistants. He was appointed painter to Philip IV in the 1630s. After 1640, the artist's fame declined due to his austere, hard-edged style.
It is not known whether Zurbarán had the opportunity to see Caravaggio's paintings, but he used a similarly realistic style and technique in his works. Some art historians consider the painter Juan Sánchez Cotán to have the greatest influence on his characteristically powerful compositions.
He chose his figures mostly from reclusive religious figures. His style is more reserved and ornamented than Caravaggio's; The hue is usually bluish. Extraordinary effects are achieved with precisely finished foregrounds that are largely light and shadowy. Backgrounds are often featureless and dark.