JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL Seville 1622 - 1690 Angel of the Passion with a Basin, a Reed with a Sponge and a Holy Lance, c. 1665-1670 Oil on canvas Dimensions 183 x 107 cm Provenance: - Possibly the collection of Don Manuel López Cepero, Seville, 1836. - Solís Collection, Seville, until 1970. - Andrés Villacieros Ramos and Elisa de Pablos Villacieros Collection, Seville, c. 1970-1986. - Belén Villacieros Collection, Puerto de Santa María, Cádiz, 1986 - 2005. - By descent to the current owners, Madrid. This work belongs to an important iconographic cycle dedicated to the Passionary Angels that derives from the Mass of Saint Gregory. A miraculous event that occurred in the 6th century that narrates how during the celebration of the Holy Mass officiated by Pope Gregory I a parishioner began to doubt the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, at which time the Sacred Host was transformed into a bleeding finger of Christ. This story, already greatly altered by other apocryphal sources, had a strong impact on the visual arts from the 13th century onwards thanks to the Golden Legend. In this way, the bleeding finger was replaced by the image of Christ the Man of Sorrows and the appearance on the altar of an altarpiece with the Arma Christi or instruments of the Passion, isolated or carried by seven angels messengers of God. In the work in question we can see a Passionate Angel of a strong build and an enraptured expression, covered in rich clothing and other luxurious adornments. In his hands he carries various objects from the Arma Christi, such as a basin, a sponge on a reed and a lance. All these attributes allude to the last moments of Christ in his Crucifixion. In this sense the painter has completed the narrative content of the painting by incorporating in the background the scene of the Calvary in which an executioner forces Christ to drink wine mixed with gall to lessen his pain. This work must have belonged to a cycle formed by another six or seven canvases of which, in addition to this last one, Angel with a flagellum and a column from the collection of the Bank of Spain and Angel with a shroud from a private collection in Seville are preserved. All these paintings of similar dimensions and technique can be dated between 1665-1670, which correspond to the years of the artist's plenitude. Although we know nothing about their original origin, it is very likely that these three works belonged to the collection of the Sevillian canon López Cepero, who amassed an important collection of paintings after the ecclesiastical confiscation of church property in 1836. The rich colours of the clothing are particularly beautiful, in dramatic contrast to the twilight background. The artist has also given the scene a restrained dynamism thanks to the twisted figure of the angel with his moving clothes. The painter shows great technical skill by using a confident drawing and a loose brushstroke of rich glazes. Bibliography: - Valdivieso, Enrique., Juan de Valdés Leal, Junta de Andalucía / Universidad de Sevilla, 2023, p. 276.
Oil on canvas. The work shown here recalls the tragic outcome of the biblical passage in which Salome, instigated by Herodias, danced and convinced Herod to serve her the head of the Baptist on a silver platter. The fatal consequence of this episode is shown on the canvas through an image of great visual impact that, in the rhetoric of the Baroque, also contained an important moral and reflective background in which various themes are intertwined such as heartbreak, jealousy, intrigue, revenge, incest, lust and the topic of women as the instigator of sin. The severed heads of saints, such as that of Saint John the Baptist, were a recurring theme in Spanish Baroque painting, especially in the Seville school. Sebastian de Llanos Valdes (c. 1605-1677) and his imitators addressed this theme on several occasions, but in this painting we can recognise the unmistakable style and technique of Juan de Valdes Leal. The supremacy of colour over drawing, the very personal red tone of the cloak, the white lead glints on the metal of the tray and the knife, the rustic texture of the cane cross, the way of constructing the flesh tone of the face, the hair blending with the depth of the black background, the halo barely suggested with a thin and brief curved line and the fluidity of the phylactery, which seems to spill like a waterfall into the tray, speak to us of the mastery that the Sevillian artist had achieved in these years. Apart from all this, it is worth highlighting its relationship with the drawing of the same theme that is preserved in the Kunsthalle in Hamburg, which must have been preparatory; one of the few sure works by his hand and which, until now, was linked to the work of Carmen Calzado in Cordoba and with an earlier chronology. In the lower right corner there is an old collection number that has not been identified, with Arabic numerals in white (No. 78). All these details, together with the remarkable period frame and its good state of conservation, make this painting an important novelty in the production of this Sevillian artist who is fundamental to the history of Spanish Golden Age art. Dimensions: 45.5 x 62 cm.
Juan de Valdés Leal (Seville, 1622 - 1690) "The Baptism of Christ" Oil on canvas. 95 x 71 cm. This painting was part of the exhibition "Artis Momentum", which was held to mark the celebration of the Teresian Jubilee Year at the Carmelite Fathers' Convent in Alba de Tormes, from October 2022 to October 2023.
Attributed to JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL (Seville, 1622 - 1690). "St. Jerome penitent. Oil on canvas. Relined. It presents restorations on the pictorial surface. Provenance: Former collection Antonio Ramos Asensio (Seville). Measurements: 124 x 103,5 cm. This work represents a typical iconography of the Spain of the XVII century, in which we see Saint Jerónimo listening to the trumpet of the Apocalypse, whose presence is appreciated in the upper left zone of the scene. The saint appears in penitence, half naked and covered only by a red cloak, meditating in the desert with a human skull and writing the Holy Scriptures. Below is a lion in repose, one of the main iconographic attributes of the saint. As for the tonality, the author echoes the tenebrism of the time, although his painting shows a vaporous finish, which can be seen especially in the pictorial conception of the sky, or in the hair and beards of the characters, a resource that was common in Valdés Leal's painting, as can be seen in the treatment of St. Jerome. In fact, Valdés Leal immortalized the saint on several occasions as can be seen in his work "The Temptations of St. Jerome", which is currently in the Museum of Fine Arts in Seville or for example in the portrait of the saint that is in the Prado Museum in Madrid. In spite of the difficult character with which he appears portrayed in the sources, the truth is that Valdés Leal's work is quite varied and is in line with the painting that was being done in his environment. We do not know at what date he moved to Cordoba, although it is likely that he had already received his first artistic training in his native city. It has been speculated that he was close to the workshop of Herrera el Viejo, and also to the art of the Cordovan Antonio del Castillo, as possible influences for his first known signed and dated work, the San Andrés de la iglesia de San Francisco de Córdoba, from 1647. In it he combined with visible success the monumentality of the figure of the saint with a naturalistic approach. In 1656 he settled in Seville, where he spent most of his life. In 1660 he was one of the founders of the Academy of Drawing, of which he became president in 1663. The following year Palomino established his trip to the court and to El Escorial, a journey that can still be understood as an apprenticeship, driven by his eagerness to know the works of the great masters present in the royal collections. In 1667 he joined the Brotherhood of Charity of Seville, whose founder had been Miguel de Mañara, the noble visionary author of the eschatological Discurso de la Verdad, to which Valdés would remain attached from then on. In 1671, Valdés Leal had the opportunity to work as an architect on the ephemeral decorations that the cathedral of Seville had installed to celebrate the canonization of Saint Ferdinand. Thanks to these works Palomino defines him as "a great draftsman, perspective and architect". He also made two engravings, reproducing his works in the cathedral, for Fernando Torres Farfán's book celebrating this event, which gives us an insight into his work as an architect. These are his most important works as a printmaker, although his engraving of the cathedral monstrance, a self-portrait and the posthumous image of Miguel de Mañara are also known. In 1672 he was in Cordoba, an occasion that Palomino took advantage of to meet him personally. This gives more value to the affirmation of the Cordovan treatise writer about the literary interest of Valdés Leal, because he makes him possess "the ornament of all the good letters, without forgetting those of poetry".... It presents restorations on the pictorial surface. Provenance: Former collection Antonio Ramos Asensio (Seville).
Oil on canvas. No frame attached. 205 x 150 cm just the canvas. Provenance: important Zaragoza private collection. Reference bibliography: Fernando Quiles García, Trampantojos sevillanos del siglo XVIII, Atrio, Revista de Historia del Arte, Sevilla 2010 (ISSN: 0214-8289). Procedencia: importante colección particular española.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL (Seville, 1622 - 1690). "The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian and Saint Zoilo". Oil on canvas. Relined. Works exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts of Murcia. Works reproduced in the catalog "Masters of the Spanish Baroque, Granados Collection, Unpublished Work. Museum of Fine Arts of Murcia. 2020-2021. p. 144. They present restorations and flaws in the pictorial surface. They have a 17th century frame. Measurements: 75 x 52 cm (x2); 95 x 71,5 cm (frames, x2). Pair of paintings by Juan de Valdés Leal. The models, composition, colors, and, above all, his quick and courageous technique are characteristic of this painter. Due to their similarity in measurements, subject and composition, it seems logical that they are the result of the same and specific commission to the painter. Their degree of completion is very hurried, so they would not be sketches. On the other hand, they could have been part of a series of scenes of martyr saints. The representation of effigies of saints in landscapes, complemented with small figures, is typical of Sevillian Baroque painting. It can be said that it was popularized by Zurbarán. And we know that Valdés himself made several series of lives and effigies of saints, mainly of founders of orders for their respective convents (St. Jerome, life of St. Ignatius, etc.) with a similar scheme. Regarding the first of these, its main figure can be compared to that of Saint Sebastian that, around 1659-60, Valdés Leal painted for the altarpiece of the chapel of the Quinta Angustia, in the church of Magdalene in Seville. There are evident similarities between the two figures in the model, the soft and luminous treatment of the skin, the contraposto of the figure with the waist backwards, the inclined torso and the weight of the body supported on the forward left leg. However, its narrow format -obliged by its original location in the main altarpiece of the disappeared church of San Benito de Calatrava- makes the posture of the Quinta Angustia more recollected. On the contrary, the posture of the present Saint Sebastian is more open and dynamic. The arms are open and the author demonstrates his mastery by placing his forearm and left hand extended foreshortened towards the viewer, a gesture that is balanced with the saint's right leg bent in the opposite direction. The composition is ordered by means of two imaginary diagonals that converge in the face of the martyr, who looks at the sky, while a couple of little angels, -link with the celestial divinity-, flutter in the center of the scene. Regarding the model used, it will be none other than the classic one by Guido Reni, which was widely used by Spanish artists, of which Pedro Orrente gave a good account in the painting made for the Cathedral of Valencia. Moreover, in his drawing of The Flagellation of Christ (brown wash, pen on laid paper, yellowish, 350 x 253 mm.) which is preserved in the Museo Nacional del Prado, we can see a similar compositional scheme, as well as interesting similarities in the treatment of the characters and their way of conveying the drama of the scene. Sebastian's red clamid and feathered helmet, symbols of his rank as an officer, add an intense note of color to the composition. On the other side, the landscape opens up and, in the background, a group of soldiers, one on horseback, also wearing a cape and a feathered helmet, and in front of him two men wearing Moorish-style turbans, complete the scene. In the background, more soldiers summarily described with blurred strokes merge into the same. As a singular detail with respect to the flying angels that complete it, it is possible to indicate how the little angel in the center grabs with his right hand the cloth that falls from the sky, a peculiar detail that Valdés Leal also used in the angels that decorate the lunettes of the vault of the presbytery in the church of the Venerable Priests of Seville. A more faithful follower of some of the stamps seems to be shown in the composition of the Martyrdom of Saint Zoilo, the famous martyr from Cordoba who died at the end of the 3rd century -during the persecution of the emperors Diocletian and Maximian-, after having his kidneys removed (see Santos Urbaneja, 2003). Nevertheless, the description of the saint, half-naked and tied to the tree in an unstable position and in a reclaiming condition, is similar to that of Saint Sebastian in the way he presents his head turned towards the angels who carry the palm of his martyrdom. Behind his back, the infamous torturer is executed in earthy tones. The composition is also arranged with two diagonals that converge on the martyr's face, although the secondary characters and the background are more developed here. Diocletian and Maximian would be the two characters on horseback and with crown that appear in the background on the right, behind a group led by a woman, who would point to the rest of Zoilus' fellow martyrs. To the left, in front of a crenellated tower with a door, another group with a prominent figure in the center, in yellow and covered head, who would be the judge who ordered the martyrdom. Finally, above the saint, two angels carry a martyr's palm and crown. Both paintings must be related to the Martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew that is preserved in the church of Segura de León, Badajoz, (fig.1) work that was discovered in 2013, and therefore, like these two, not included in any of the catalogs of Valdés Leal published previously. This painting was studied by Valdivieso González, dating it between 1683 and 1686, the artist's last period of maturity in which he devoted himself to painting large decorative cycles, such as the Hospital de la Caridad, Monasterio de San Clemente and the church of the Hospital de los Venerables in Seville. Works exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts of Murcia. Works reproduced in the catalog "Masters of the Spanish Baroque, Granados Collection, Unpublished Works. Museum of Fine Arts of Murcia. 2020-2021. p. 144. They present restorations and flaws in the pictorial surface.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL Seville 1622 - 1690 Ecce Homo Oil on canvas Inscribed: "DUM SPINIS PUNGI TOLERAT" Dimensions 108.5 x 85 cm This Ecce Homo can be compared with the signed and dated version of 1659, which was sold in the New York art dealership in 2006. This comparison shows a complete identity in the expression on Christ's face and the treatment of his aching anatomy. There is an exact replica of this Ecce Homo in a private collection in Seville, although this copy is not signed. What stands out in this painting is the technical treatment that the artist has given it, which corresponds to the moment in Valdés Leal's career when he reached his full creative peak. Other versions of the Ecce Homo by Valdés Leal, in which the physical expressiveness of Christ, and especially of his face, can be found in the Ecce Homo that was on sale in the art market in London in 2017. Apart from the coincidence in the description of the physical treatment, the chromatic effects captured in the painful flesh tones of Christ's body and in the power of the red tones of the cloak that covers his back are entirely Valdés Leal's own. A neutral background of a green-grey tone perfectly highlights and defines the figure of the Redeemer. This work is interesting because at the top of the canvas there is a label that is completely contemporary with the painting, on which the text can be read in Roman letters: DUM SOINIS PUNGI TOLERAT. This text is taken from the Hymn of the Feast of the Crown of Thorns, written by the chapel master of the Cathedral of Seville, of Portuguese origin, Francisco de Santiago, who held this position between 1617 and 1642. The inscription is nothing more than a fragment of a longer phrase that points out that he endured the pain caused by the pricks of the thorns without being guilty of them. Valdés Leal must have painted this text at the request of someone who knew the Hymn written by Francisco de Santiago and therefore in the image that he offers in this Ecce Homo he perfectly translates the expression on Christ's face, showing a countenance in which physical pain is clearly absent, totally contained, which is supplemented by a profound spiritual balance, which translates how the Redeemer fully assumes the sufferings inflicted on him throughout his passion. There is therefore no pathos in this scene, which was the enormous significance of Jesus' sufferings and the total moderation with which he endures them. Enrique Valdivieso González Seville, June 15, 2023 Bibliography: - Valdivieso González, Enrique., Juan de Valdés Leal, 2021, p. 288 and 483.
CIRCLE OF JUAN DE NISA VALDÉS LEAL 4 May 1622 Seville - 15 October 1690 ibid FLAGGELATION OF CHRIST Oil on panel. 58 x 28 cm (F. 70 x 40 cm). Part. old rest., old retouching. Frame. Provenance: Southwest German private collection. JUAN DE NISA VALDÉS LEAL (UMKREIS) 4. Mai 1622 Sevilla - 15. Oktober 1690 ebenda GEISELUNG CHRISTI Öl auf Holztafel. 58 x 28 cm (R. 70 x 40 cm). Part. altrest., Altretuschen. Rahmen. Provenienz: Südwestdeutsche Privatsammlung.
Oil on canvas. Measurements: 53 x 40 cm. Framed measurements: 71 x 58 cm. (Seville, 1622-1690). Spanish painter and printmaker. Strictly a contemporary artist of Murillo, he was his greatest pictorial rival in the Seville of his time. The comparison between both painters has been frequent, artificially encouraged by the character of the works of both: if Murillo's was seen as the very expression of the sweetness and calm, the harshness and drama of the work of Valdés Leal and, Above all, the extreme truculence of his best-known works, the vanitas of the Church of La Caridad in Seville, serve to confirm the dichotomy. But, despite the difficult character with which he appears portrayed in the sources, the truth is that Valdés Leal's work is quite varied and is in line with the painting that was done around him. We do not know when he moved to Córdoba, although he had presumably already completed his first artistic training in his hometown. There has been speculation about his approach to the workshop of Herrera the Elder, and also to the art of Antonio del Castillo from Córdoba, as possible influences for his first known signed and dated work, the San Andrés of the church of San Francisco de Córdoba, from 1647. Bibliography: Valdés Leal, cat. exp., Madrid, Museo del Prado, 1991, nos. 10, 20, 54 and 81. Provenance: important private Spanish collection.
Oil on canvas. Measurements: 53 x 40 cm. Framed measurements: 71 x 58 cm. (Seville, 1622-1690). Spanish painter and printmaker. Strictly a contemporary artist of Murillo, he was his greatest pictorial rival in the Seville of his time. The comparison between both painters has been frequent, artificially encouraged by the character of the works of both: if Murillo's was seen as the very expression of the sweetness and calm, the harshness and drama of the work of Valdés Leal and, Above all, the extreme truculence of his best-known works, the vanitas of the Church of La Caridad in Seville, serve to confirm the dichotomy. But, despite the difficult character with which he appears portrayed in the sources, the truth is that Valdés Leal's work is quite varied and is in line with the painting that was done around him. We do not know when he moved to Córdoba, although he had presumably already completed his first artistic training in his hometown. There has been speculation about his approach to the workshop of Herrera the Elder, and also to the art of Antonio del Castillo from Córdoba, as possible influences for his first known signed and dated work, the San Andrés of the church of San Francisco de Córdoba, from 1647. Bibliography: Valdés Leal, cat. exp., Madrid, Museo del Prado, 1991, nos. 10, 20, 54 and 81. Provenance: important private Spanish collection.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL Seville 1622 - 1690 Vision of Saint Francis in the Porziuncula. H. 1672-1680 Oil on canvas Measurements 63 x 47 cm Origin: - Francisco Farfán Ramos Collection, Seville, h. 1871-1935. - Private collection, Malaga. Bibliography: - Gestoso y Pérez, José. Biography of the Sevillian painter Juan de Valdés Leal, Seville, 1916, p. 194. - Valdés Leal and Retrospective Art Exhibition, Seville, 1923, p. 18, cat. No. 39. - Kinkead, Duncan T. Juan de Valdés Leal (1622-1690) his life and work, New York, 1978, p. 473, cat. No. 157. - Valdivieso, Enrique. Juan de Valdés Leal, Seville, 1988, pp. 167 and 258, cat. nº 158. - "Vision of Saint Francis in the Porciúncula" (catalog file by García Luque, Manuel) in Cat. Exp. "Valdés Leal (1622 - 1690)", Junta de Andalucía, Seville, 2021, cat. No. 37. Work exhibited in: - "Valdés Leal and Retrospective Art Exhibition", Seville, May 1922, cat. No. 39. - "Valdés Leal (1622 - 1690)", Museum of Fine Arts of Seville, December - March 2022, cat. nº 37. This delicate work of undone and vibrant brushstrokes was unveiled by José Gestoso in 1916. After the anthological exhibition of 1922, traces of it were lost until its recent appearance in the painter's commemorative exhibition held at the Museum of Fine Arts of Seville in 2022. Its execution and theme are located in the artist's prime years when he was working on his monumental Vision of Saint Francis of the Capuchin Convent of Cabra (Córdoba).
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL Seville 1622 - 1690 Calvary Oil on canvas Measurements 106 x 75 cm Origin: - Private collection. This work is a version of one of the paintings that were part of the main altarpiece of the church of San Benito de Calatrava in Seville that is currently in the chapel of Quinta Angustia in the current parish of Magdalena. of the same city Made between 1659 and 1660, the set originally consisted of eleven canvases of which the Immaculate Conception and the Calvary were located in the collateral spaces of said altarpiece. Although we do not know if this is a later or earlier version of the Magdalene canvas, we can note that the subject treated here lacks the opulence and dynamism of the first. The tragic gestures of the different characters in contrast with the calm countenance of Christ reveal the indisputable mastery of one of the great exponents of the Andalusian Baroque. Regarding the original origin of this work, its dimensions make us suspect that it was intended for private devotion. Work referenced in: - HERNÁNDEZ ROMERO, Antonio, Cat. Exp: Juan de Valdés Leal (1622-1690), Córdoba, Obra Social y Cultural Cajasur, 2001, p. 35. Work exhibited in: - Cajasur Museum Exhibition Hall, "Juan de Valdés Leal (1622 - 1690), Córdoba, 2001. This work has with export permit.
Oil on canvas. Measurements: 53 x 40 cm. Framed measurements: 71 x 58 cm. (Seville, 1622-1690). Spanish painter and printmaker. Strictly a contemporary artist of Murillo, he was his greatest pictorial rival in the Seville of his time. The comparison between both painters has been frequent, artificially encouraged by the character of the works of both: if Murillo's was seen as the very expression of the sweetness and calm, the harshness and drama of the work of Valdés Leal and, Above all, the extreme truculence of his best-known works, the vanitas of the Church of La Caridad in Seville, serve to confirm the dichotomy. But, despite the difficult character with which he appears portrayed in the sources, the truth is that Valdés Leal's work is quite varied and is in line with the painting that was done around him. We do not know when he moved to Córdoba, although he had presumably already completed his first artistic training in his hometown. There has been speculation about his approach to the workshop of Herrera the Elder, and also to the art of Antonio del Castillo from Córdoba, as possible influences for his first known signed and dated work, the San Andrés of the church of San Francisco de Córdoba, from 1647. Bibliography: Valdés Leal, cat. exp., Madrid, Museo del Prado, 1991, nos. 10, 20, 54 and 81.
Juan de Valdés Leal (Sevilla, 1622 - 1690) representa, junto a Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, la culminación del Barroco Pleno en la escuela sevillana del Siglo de Oro. Hijo de Fernando de Nisa y Antonia Valdés, su formación debió iniciarse en el taller de Francisco de Herrera el Viejo. Posteriormente, al casarse en 1647, se instaló en Córdoba, siguiendo su formación probablemente en el taller de Antonio del Castillo. A diferencia de Murillo, su estilo se caracterizó por ser más expresivo y dramático, con una pincelada vigorosa y una gama de colores cálida, a veces terrosa, donde dominan los pardos y los ocres como ocurre en la pieza que nos ocupa. Su abundante producción nos permite comprobar que estamos ante un pintor versátil, que ofrece un amplio abanico de acabados y de composiciones. Precisamente su obra se distingue de su contemporáneo Murillo en la falta de equilibrio y en su sentido menos amable de los santos y de sus representaciones dando lugar a un estilo más temperamental y más violento, agitado incluso. Su vida artística se desarrolló entre Sevilla y Córdoba donde dejó la mayoría de los encargos más importantes que recibió. Nuestro óleo sobre lienzo pertenece la serie de obras que recogen la Vida de Santa Clara. Se trata de un fragmento que figuraba en la parte superior de "La profesión de Santa Clara", de donde fue recortada. La obra representa a Cristo en el centro del lienzo acompañado por su madre la Virgen María a la izquierda bajo un arco de medio punto y sobre unas nubes con pequeños ángeles. Ésta serie fue realizada entre 1652 y 1653 para el convento de monjas franciscanas de Santa Clara de Carmona. Se trata de su primera obra documentada. El conjunto pictórico permaneció en su lugar de origen hasta 1910, año en el que fue adquirido por el arqueólogo Jorge Bonsor, quien regularizó su tamaño y las restauró conservándolas hasta su muerte en 1930. Poco tiempo después fueron vendidas por sus herederos a Don Juan March, excepto dos de ellas que fueron adquiridas por Archer Huntington, quien las donó al Ayuntamiento de Sevilla. El cuadro presenta varias etiquetas antiguas en el dorso con diversa información de procedencia. El cuadro aparece reproducido en el libro de Enrique Valdivieso sobre la obra completa del pintor. Exposiciones: - Córdoba, 1916, nº 39; Sevilla, 1922, nº 45 Bibliografía de referencia: - VALDIVIESO, Enrique: "Juan de Valdés Leal". Ediciones Guadalquivir. Sevilla, 1988. Reproducido en la pág. 228 con el número 9. - Buruete, 1911, p. 15 - 16; Mayer, 1911, p. 81; Gestoso, 1916, p. 32-39; Von Loga, 1923, p. 350; Friedlander-Lafuente Ferrari, 1935, p. 136-137; Pompey, 1955, p. 12-14; Kubler-Soria; 1959, p. 292; Trapier, 1960, p. 4-8; Valverde, 1963, p. 16; Angulo, 1971, p. 371-373; Kinkead, 1978, p. 37-51, 328-337; Id, 1985, p. 14; Valdivieso, 1986, p. 262.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL Seville 1622 - 1690 Piedad Oil on canvas Signed Measures 159.5 x 111 cm This unpublished work signed by Juan by Valdés Leal is a version similar to the one held in the Metropolitan Museum in New York of which we know nothing about its first destination. Both paintings show the same composition, although the latter version has a more precise and less vaporous drawing than the first. The scene seems to evoke some of the processional steps or small groups of clay sculptures that proliferated on the Piedad in Spanish Baroque times. The artist has used an agile and fast brushstroke, highlighting the red tones of the Virgin's tunic in contrast to the white of the shroud. The tragic gestures of Mary, the Mater Dolorosa contrast with the serene countenance of Christ, revealing the indisputable mastery of one of the great exponents of the Andalusian Baroque.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL Seville 1622 - 1690 Calvary Oil on canvas Size 106 x 75 cm Origin: - Private collection. This work is a version of one of the paintings that were part of the main altarpiece of the church of San Benito de Calatrava in Seville that is currently in the chapel of Quinta Angustia in the current parish of La Magdalena from the same city Carried out between 1659 and 1660, the set originally consisted of eleven canvases of which the Immaculate Conception and Calvary were located in the collateral spaces of said altarpiece. Although we do not know if it is a later or earlier version of the canvas of the Magdalena, we can note that the subject treated here lacks the opulence and dynamism of the former. The tragic gestures of the different characters in contrast to the calm countenance of Christ reveal the indisputable mastery of one of the great exponents of the Andalusian Baroque. Regarding the original origin of this work, its dimensions suggest that it was intended for private devotion. Work referenced in: - Antonio Hernández Romero, Cat. Exp: Juan de Valdés Leal (1622-1690), Córdoba, Obra Social y Cultural Cajasur, 2001, p. 35. Work exhibited at: - Cajasur Museum Exhibition Hall, "Juan de Valdés Leal (1622 - 1690), Córdoba, 2001.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL Seville 1622 - 1690 Appearance of Christ to Saint Ignatius on the way to Rome. 1662 Oil on canvas Signed and dated Measurements 129 x 99 cm Origin: - Collection of the Countess of Lebrija, Seville, until 1950. - Private collection. This canvas is a reduction of one of the paintings that were part of the series on the life of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, commissioned by the Jesuit priests to Valdés Leal to decorate the cloister of the Professed House in Seville, Today in the Museum of Fine Arts in Seville. Carried out between 1660 and 1669, the cycle is inspired by the engravings that illustrate the books on the life of the founder of the Society of Jesus, written by Pedro de Rivadeneyra, also a Jesuit. The scene depicts one of the founding milestones in the saint's life known as the "vision of the Storta". The miraculous event occurred in the vicinity of Rome, in a small chapel, when Saint Ignatius, together with Pedro Fabro and Diego Laínez, prepared to entrust the audience with Pope Paul III, to whom they will present their wishes to serve the Church under a new founding charism. At that moment Ignatius saw God the Father, accompanied by his Son, in the form of Christ carrying the Cross. The Father, addressing his Son, says: "I want you to take this as your servant." The Son takes Saint Ignatius of Loyola to tell him: "I want you to serve us." In this work of great theatricality and magnificence, Juan de Valdés Leal, one of the most outstanding personalities of the Andalusian Baroque, masterfully demonstrates his mastery in the art of painting. The gestures of the figures, the swirling forms, and the loose and colorful brushstrokes infuse the scene with a dynamism that is typical of the full Baroque. Origin: - Collection of the Countess of Lebrija, Seville, until 1950. - Private collection. Bibliography: - Enrique Valdivieso, Juan de Valdés Leal, Guadalquivir, Seville, 1988, nº cat. 115. - Duncan T. Kinkead, Juan de Valdés Leal (1622 - 1690). His Life and Work, New York: Ann Arbor, 1978, p. 441. - Celestino López Martínez, Juan de Valdés Leal, Sobrinos de Izquierdo, Seville, 1922, p. 40. - José Gestoso Pérez, Biography of the Sevillian painter Juan Valdés Leal, Seville, 1916, pp. 235-236. Exhibitions: - Cat. exp. Valdés Leal and Retrospective Art, Seville, Gironés, 1923, cat. No. 26.
Juan de Valdés Leal Seville 1622 - 1690 Seville Circle of "Cras Tibi" Spain End of 16./beginning of 17. century Oil on wood panel 43 x 65,5 cm The Spanish Baroque painter Juan de Valdés Leal studied with Francisco de Herrera the Elder (1576-1656), among others, and was regarded as a technically extremely gifted artist. He also interacted with Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617-1682) and produced his first works in Córdoba in 1652, but soon returned to Seville. Valdés Leal was very productive, and his works are characterised by great inventiveness. He liked to paint the Baroque theme of vanitas or memento mori, which was widespread throughout Europe. This gloomy and macabre theme also earned him the name "painter of the dead", as is also clearly expressed in this painting. From the right side, a middle-aged man approaches an emaciated body lying on the dry earth. He is wearing a liturgical vestment, the violet colour of the dalmatic being associated with penitence, repentance, and mourning, and is also worn at funerals instead of the traditional black dress. He looks down at the corpse with a furrowed forehead and points to it with an almost imploring gesture, as if he wants to address it. The man's body, already desiccated in rigor mortis, lies on the earthy ground, surrounded by skeletal parts and skulls. His head, with its frizzy patch of hair and sunken cheeks, is also propped up on a skull. The sunken abdomen further emphasises the ribcage emerging from underneath the paper-thin skin. His scrawny arms are resting on the thighs, as if in a pose of sleep. The sinewy legs hang limply to the side and only a torn cloth covers his loins. It appears to be a chance encounter, with the sight of the dead man intended to evoke terror in the viewer. Interestingly, the dead man's blank stare is directed at the approaching man, with dark eye sockets and a wide-open mouth. Although he is no longer capable of speech, the communication to the living is revealed by the writing on the scroll above the corpse: it reads "cras tibi", referring to an inscription often found on medieval tombstones: "hodie mihi, cras tibi" - "today it is me, tomorrow it will be you". This expresses the transience of human life and the victory of death, typical of Valdés Leal's pestilential paintings. The background offers a scene of the end times with the juxtaposition of a blue-grey sky from which an angel flies down carrying a person - perhaps the soul a man? - while on the left another figure seems to fall into the blazing fire of hell. This contrast also reflects the moral of the painting, namely, to be penitent in order to be redeemed after death. Particularly important here is one's position in this world and the high importance of charity, this being understood as one of the tasks of the commissioning church. Thematically similar paintings by the so-called painter of the dead are "Finis gloriae mundi" ("The End of the Glory of the World") and "In ictu oculi" ("In the Blink of an Eye") from 1670-72, which show human remains or even a grim reaper triumphing over the deceased. The works on the allegory of death and its universality, which Valdés Leal called "hieroglyphics of our life after death", are the culmination of his artistic work.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL (Seville, 1622 - 1690) "The sale of Joseph by his brothers". Oil on canvas. Re-coloured. It has restorations and repainting. It conserves a partial signature in the lower right area. Measurements: 187 x 142 cm; 204 x 157 cm (frame). The artist of this work plays with the ambiguity of the subject, since it offers us at first sight a dispute between a great number of men, and a young man who is being harassed and retained by the majority. The scene, which appears to be based on genre painting, is in fact a devotional work depicting the passage from Genesis that alludes to the sale of Joseph by his brothers, who envied him because of their father Jacob's predilection for him. The author has depicted a specific moment, the most dramatic and important in the story, as it is the moment of the capture. In addition, the composition in the form of a cross, very typical of the Baroque period, with marked diagonals and the position of Joseph's body as the central axis of the scene, lend great dynamism and expressiveness to the scene. This configuration was repeated by Leal on several occasions, for example in his work "The Wedding at Cana", now in the Seville Museum of Fine Arts. In terms of tonality, the artist echoes the tenebrism of the period, although his painting displays a vaporous finish, which is particularly noticeable in the pictorial conception of the sky, or in the hair and beards of the figures, a resource that was common in Valdés Leal's painting, as can be seen in the treatment of the figures in the painting of the Life of Saint Ambrose, which was exhibited at the Museo del Prado in 2004. Despite the difficult character with which he is portrayed in the sources, the fact is that Valdés Leal's work is quite varied and is in line with the painting that was being done in his environment. We do not know when he moved to Córdoba, although it is likely that he had already trained as an artist in his native city. It has been speculated that he was influenced by the workshop of Herrera the Elder, and also by the art of the Cordovan Antonio del Castillo, as possible influences for his first known signed and dated work, the Saint Andrew in the church of San Francisco in Cordoba, dated 1647. In it he combined the monumentality of the figure of the saint with a naturalistic approach with visible success. In 1656 he settled in Seville, where he spent most of his life. In 1660 he was one of the founders of the Academy of Drawing, of which he became president in 1663. The following year Palomino set out on his trip to the court and to El Escorial, a journey that can still be understood as an apprenticeship, driven by his eagerness to become acquainted with the works of the great masters in the royal collections. In 1667 he joined the Brotherhood of Charity in Seville, whose founder had been Miguel de Mañara, the noble visionary author of the eschatological Discourse on Truth, to which Valdés would remain attached from then on. In 1671 Valdés Leal had the opportunity to work as an architect on the ephemeral decorations that the Seville cathedral had installed to celebrate the canonisation of Saint Ferdinand. Thanks to these works Palomino defines him as "a great draughtsman, perspectivist and architect". He also produced two engravings, reproducing his works in the cathedral, for Fernando Torres Farfán's book celebrating the event, which gives us an insight into his work as an architect. These are his most important works as a printmaker, although his engraving of the cathedral monstrance, a self-portrait and the posthumous image of Miguel de Mañara are also known. In 1672 he was in Cordoba, an occasion Palomino took advantage of to meet him in person. This gives added value to the Cordovan treatise writer's affirmation of Valdés Leal's literary interest, as he describes him as possessing "the ornamentation of all good letters, not forgetting those of poetry".
Attributed to JUAN DE NISA VALDÉS LEAL (1622 Seville 1690) An angel shows Saint Ferdinand III. of Castille the way. Pen and brown ink, black chalk. Old mount on backing board. Old inscription verso on the board in pen and black ink: No.3 S. Fernando. Old bill written in Spanish in pen and brown ink. 39.8 x 29.5 cm (the corners cut). --------------- JUAN DE NISA VALDÉS LEAL, zugeschrieben (1622 Sevilla 1690) Ein Engel weist dem Hl. Ferdinand III. von Kastilien den Weg. Feder in Braun, schwarze Kreide. Auf Unterlagenbogen alt aufgezogen. Dort verso mit schwarzer Feder alt bezeichnet: No.3 S. Fernando. Mit brauner Feder alte Rechnungen in spanischer Sprache. 39,8 x 29,5 cm (die Ecken angeschrägt). ---------------
Attributed to JUAN DE NISA VALDÉS LEAL (1622 Seville 1690) Design for an altar decoration with angels and putti. Pen and brown ink, grey wash, traces of black chalk. Old inscription on the backing board: Valdes Leal. 38 x 27.5 cm. --------------- JUAN DE NISA VALDÉS LEAL, zugeschrieben (1622 Sevilla 1690) Entwurf zu einem Altargesprenge mit Engel und Putten. Feder in Braun, grau laviert, Spuren von schwarzer Kreide. Auf dem Unterlagenbogen alt bezeichnet: Valdes Leal. 38 x 27,5 cm. ---------------
Oil on canvas, framed. With the poem "Life is a dream" by Pedro Calderón de la Barca. We find ourselves before an interesting composition in the "vanitas" theme, very extended by most of Europe during the XV to XVIII centuries, the allegories "finis gloriae mundi "(The end of worldly glories) and "in ictu oculi" (In the blink of an eye) illustrate the thought of Miguel de Mañara, renovator of the Brotherhood of Holy Charity, as he wrote in his Book of Truth , in addition to completing the iconographic program of the chapel, made up of the Holy Burial of the main altarpiece and the series of "works of mercy" painted by Murillo, with which they form a coherent whole. However, the macabre of his subject - and the strong personality of the painter - were detrimental to his posthumous fame and made it easy for him to end up being attributed any painting in which a decomposing corpse or the severed head of a saint appeared, even if it were It was about paintings of the lowest quality. Become a «painter of the dead», as Enrique Romero de Torres called him, All lugubrious and repulsive affairs seemed to suit him, while with romantic overtones the rivalry with Murillo, his contemporary, was enlarged and deepened, since Valdés was assumed to have an angry and arrogant temperament opposed to the peaceful character of his rival. Measurements: 108 x 69
Oil on canvas, framed. With the poem "Life is a dream" by Pedro Calderón de la Barca. We are faced with an interesting composition framed in the theme with the theme of vanitas, widespread throughout most of Europe during the fifteenth to eighteenth centuries, the allegories "finis gloriae mundi" (The end of worldly glories) and "in ictu oculi” (In the blink of an eye) illustrate the thought of Miguel de Mañara, renovator of the Brotherhood of Holy Charity, as he left it written in his Book of Truth, in addition to completing the iconographic program of the chapel, made up of the Holy Burial of the main altarpiece and the series of "works of mercy" painted by Murillo, with which they form a coherent whole. Nevertheless, the macabre of its subject matter—and the strong personality of the painter—were detrimental to his posthumous fame and made it easy for any painting showing a decomposing corpse or the severed head of a saint to be attributed to him, even if they were paintings of poor quality. Turned into a "painter of the dead", as Enrique Romero de Torres called him, all the gloomy and repulsive matters seemed to suit him, while with romantic overtones the rivalry with Murillo, his contemporary, was enlarged and deepened, by supposing Valdés an angry and arrogant temperament opposed to the peaceful character of his rival. Measurements: 108 x 69 even if it was subpar quality paints. Turned into a "painter of the dead", as Enrique Romero de Torres called him, all the gloomy and repulsive matters seemed to suit him, while with romantic overtones the rivalry with Murillo, his contemporary, was enlarged and deepened, by supposing Valdés an angry and arrogant temperament opposed to the peaceful character of his rival. Measurements: 108 x 69 even if it was subpar quality paints. Turned into a "painter of the dead", as Enrique Romero de Torres called him, all the gloomy and repulsive matters seemed to suit him, while with romantic overtones the rivalry with Murillo, his contemporary, was enlarged and deepened, by supposing Valdés an angry and arrogant temperament opposed to the peaceful character of his rival. Measurements: 108 x 69
17th century Andalusian school. Circle of JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL (Seville, 1622 - 1690). "Head of Saint John the Baptist". Oil on original canvas. Frame simulating rosewood. Measurements: 50 x 45 cm; 61 x 56,5 cm (frame). In this work the artist does not pay homage to the mortuary and macabre but, by representing the head of the saint, he tries to pay homage to those Christians who knew how to give their lives in defence of the Faith. There is no recreation of the gruesome in this work, but rather an exaltation of martyrdom, an idea propagated by the Counter-Reformation through the Church. Compositionally and stylistically, this painting should be contextualised within the Andalusian school. The Baroque style, the chiaroscuro, the theme of martyrdom, or rather, of the decapitated heads of the martyrs, which abounded in the painting of Valdés Leal or Llanos y Valdés and the Sevillian circle, place this painting within the Tenebrist tradition which, in parallel to Murillo's gentleness, developed in a rougher aesthetic, in the drama of the memento mori, etc. The Gospels say of John the Baptist that he was the son of the priest Zechariah and Elizabeth, cousin of the Virgin Mary. He retired at a very young age to the desert of Judea to lead an ascetic life and preach penance, and recognised in Jesus, who was baptised by him, the Messiah announced by the prophets. A year after Christ's baptism, in the year 29, John was arrested and imprisoned by the tetrarch of Galilee Herod Antipas, whose marriage to Herodias, his niece and sister-in-law, he had dared to censure. Finally St. John was beheaded, and his head given to Salome as a reward for his beautiful dances. This saint appears in Christian art in two different guises: as a child, a playmate of Jesus, and as an adult, an ascetic preacher. As for the representation of his head, either alone or carried by Salome, although it has its roots in the 6th-century Codex Sinopensis, it is not usually depicted until the Romanesque period. However, with the transition from the Middle Ages to the Modern period, the representation of Salome with the saint's head lost importance in favour of the bloody scene of the Baptist's head on a tray.
Cículo de JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL (Seville, 1622 - 1690). "Saint Francis of Borgia". Oil on canvas. Repainting. Lacking in the frame. Measurements: 64 x 51 cm; 82,5 x 67,5 cm (frame). Contemporary of Murillo, Valdés Leal was his biggest pictorial rival in the Seville of his time. However, their language differs greatly. Murillo's gentleness contrasts with the latter's harshness and dramatic verism. In this representation of Saint Francis Borgia, whom we recognise by the skull and imperial crown he holds in his left hand, the saint is depicted with a countenance reminiscent of other religious figures depicted by Valdés Leal, starting with the painting of the same figure that he produced for the pictorial series on the life of Saint Ignatius of Loyola (now in the Museo de Bellas Artes in Seville). Under the lowered eyelids, black eyes of impenetrably deep expression, together with the frown and half-open lips, reveal with intensity a moment of inner transformation. The dark, velvety-textured clothing accentuates by contrast the naturalism of the flesh tones, both on the face and on the hands. The glittering jewels on the skull denote particular skill in the use of glazes and glitter. The psychological depth and the symbol of the crowned skull convey the horror at the discovery of the decomposition of the Empress Isabella of Portugal when she was about to hand over her corpse in Granada. The jewels symbolise the saint's renunciation of all earthly goods. Especially known for his paintings of vanitas (such as those he painted for the church of La Caridad in Seville), Valdés Leal nevertheless worked on all kinds of religious themes. We do not know when he moved to Córdoba, although it is likely that he had already trained as an artist in his native city. It has been speculated that he was influenced by the workshop of Herrera el Viejo, and also by the art of the Cordovan Antonio del Castillo, as possible influences for his first known signed and dated work, the San Andrés in the church of San Francisco in Cordoba, dated 1647. In it he was able to combine the monumentality of the figure of the saint with a naturalistic approach with visible success. In 1656 he settled in Seville, where he spent most of his life. In 1660 he was one of the founders of the Academy of Drawing, of which he became president in 1663. The following year Palomino set out on his trip to the court and to El Escorial, a journey that can still be understood as an apprenticeship, driven by his eagerness to become acquainted with the works of the great masters in the royal collections. In 1667 he joined the Brotherhood of Charity in Seville, whose founder had been Miguel de Mañara, the noble visionary author of the eschatological Discourse on Truth, to which Valdés would remain attached from then on. In 1671 Valdés Leal had the opportunity to work as an architect on the ephemeral decorations that the Seville cathedral had installed to celebrate the canonisation of Saint Ferdinand. Thanks to these works Palomino defines him as "a great draughtsman, perspectivist and architect". He also produced two engravings, reproducing his works in the cathedral, for Fernando Torres Farfán's book celebrating the event, which gives us an insight into his work as an architect. These are his most important works as a printmaker, although his engraving of the cathedral monstrance, a self-portrait and the posthumous image of Miguel de Mañara are also known. In 1672 he was in Cordoba, an occasion that Palomino took advantage of to meet him personally. This lends further value to the Cordovan treatise writer's affirmation of Valdés Leal's literary interest, as he describes him as possessing "the ornament of all good letters, not forgetting those of poetry".
Cordovan school of the second third of the seventeenth century, following models of JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL (Seville, 1622 - 1690). "Christ on the way to Calvary". Oil on canvas. Relined. With important period frame. Measurements: 149 x 149 cm; 183 x 183 cm (frame). This dramatic scene represents one of the moments of the Passion of Christ: Jesus is heading, with the cross on which he will be executed, on his way to Mount Calvary. Because of the figure of Christ holding the cross, this work is closely related to the canvas of the same name painted by Juan de Valdés Leal around 1661, now in the Prado Museum. In both works, the composition is organized diagonally, directly confronting the viewer with the figure of Jesus. The figures behind the Nazarene, the Virgin and another woman, possibly Mary Magdalene or the Virgin's sister, weep in grief, while St. John points to the event with his hand. Behind this foreground composed of the main figures of the scene, a panoramic landscape unfolds in which a multitude of characters is crowded together, mainly composed of Roman soldiers on foot or on horseback, as well as the two thieves who will be executed next to Christ. The artificial diagonal composition, as well as the exacerbated dynamism, the expressiveness of the whole, the pictorial treatment or the dramatic lighting, with intense chiaroscuro and vibrant touches of color, allow us to ascribe this scene to the Cordovan Baroque school, from the last third of the 17th century.
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL (Seville, 1622 - 1690). "The guardian angel". Oil on panel. Cradled. Measurements: 50 x 78 cm; 60 x 88 cm (frame). The religious painting of Valdés Leal stood out for its use of complex compositions, variegated of characters as in this particular case. Although a pyramidal structure can be appreciated in the center, which facilitates the reading of the scene, the author places several figures at both ends and in deeper planes, which turns the religious image into a representation full of dynamism and expressiveness. In the center, the figure of the Child Jesus is represented, accompanied by the Guardian Angel, who holds his hand and seems to guide him. In Christianity, the guardian angel would be the one that God has appointed to each person to protect him. Hence, he is usually represented as a guide for life understood as a path, as is the case here. The fact that the sculptor has represented the faithful with the figure of a child emphasizes even more this protective role that the guardian angel fulfills with respect to the defenseless Christian soul. Formally it is a work halfway between Mannerism and Baroque, although at first sight the dynamism and expressive force of the latter style dominates. However, the anatomy of the angel refers to models of Michelangelo, a key reference for the artists of Mannerism. Thus, it is a strong, muscular character with great presence, endowed with a certain idealization and far from the realistic canons of the Baroque. Valdés Leal worked, however, on all kinds of religious themes. We do not know at what date he moved to Cordoba, although it is foreseeable that he had already received his first artistic training in his native city. It has been speculated that he was close to the workshop of Herrera el Viejo, and also to the art of the Cordovan Antonio del Castillo, as possible influences for his first known signed and dated work, the San Andrés de la iglesia de San Francisco de Córdoba, from 1647. In it he combined with visible success the monumentality of the figure of the saint with a naturalistic approach. In 1656 he settled in Seville, where he spent most of his life. In 1660 he was one of the founders of the Academy of Drawing, of which he became president in 1663. The following year Palomino established his trip to the court and to El Escorial, a journey that can still be understood as an apprenticeship, driven by his eagerness to know the works of the great masters present in the royal collections. In 1667 he joined the Brotherhood of Charity of Seville, whose founder had been Miguel de Mañara, the noble visionary author of the eschatological Discourse of Truth, to which Valdés would remain attached from then on. In 1671, Valdés Leal had the opportunity to work as an architect on the ephemeral decorations that the cathedral of Seville had installed to celebrate the canonization of Saint Ferdinand. Thanks to these works Palomino defines him as "a great draftsman, perspective and architect". He also made two engravings, reproducing his works in the cathedral, for Fernando Torres Farfán's book celebrating this event, which gives us an insight into his work as an architect. These are his most important works as a printmaker, although his engraving of the cathedral monstrance, a self-portrait and the posthumous image of Miguel de Mañara are also known. In 1672 he was in Cordoba, an occasion that Palomino took advantage of to meet him personally. This gives more value to the affirmation of the Cordovan treatise writer on the literary interest of Valdés Leal, because he makes him possess "the ornament of all the good letters, without forgetting those of poetry".
Oil on canvas, framed. With the poem "Life is a dream" by Pedro Calderón de la Barca. We find ourselves before an interesting composition framed in the theme with the vanitas theme, very extended by most of Europe during the XV to XVIII centuries, the allegories "finis gloriae mundi "(The end of worldly glories) and "in ictu oculi" (In the blink of an eye) illustrate the thought of Miguel de Mañara, renovator of the Brotherhood of Holy Charity, as he wrote in his Book of Truth , in addition to completing the iconographic program of the chapel, made up of the Holy Burial of the main altarpiece and the series of "works of mercy" painted by Murillo, with which they form a coherent whole. However, the macabre of his subject - and the strong personality of the painter - were detrimental to his posthumous fame and made it easy for him to end up being attributed any painting in which a decomposing corpse or the severed head of a saint appeared, even if it were It was about paintings of the lowest quality. Become a «painter of the dead», as Enrique Romero de Torres called him, All lugubrious and repulsive affairs seemed to suit him, while with romantic overtones the rivalry with Murillo, his contemporary, was enlarged and deepened, since Valdés was assumed to have an angry and arrogant temperament opposed to the peaceful character of his rival. Measurements: 108 x 69
From the Estate of architectural designer Leslie Taylor Ojai, Ca who purchased her paintings at Sullivan Goss. The Santo is by the hand or of the school of Juan de Valdes Leal (1622 - 1690) who was active/lived in Italy, Spain. measures 9" x 7.25" oil on panel "Santo"
JUAN DE VALDÉS LEAL 1622 Sevilla - 1690 El bautismo de Cristo en el Jordán Óleo sobre lienzo Juan de Valdés Leal (Sevilla, 1622-Sevilla, 1690) representa, junto al genial Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, la culminación del Barroco Pleno en la escuela sevillana del Siglo de Oro. Hijo de Fernando de Nisa y Antonia Valdés, su formación debió iniciarse en el taller de Francisco de Herrera el Viejo y en Córdoba, donde se instala tras casarse en 1647, probablemente en el taller de Antonio del Castillo. A diferencia de Murillo su estilo se caracterizó por ser más expresivo y dramático, con una pincelada vigorosa y una gama de colores cálida, a veces terrosa, donde dominan los pardos y los ocres. Si bien es verdad que su abundante producción nos permite comprobar que estamos ante un pintor versátil, que ofrece un amplio abanico de acabados y de composiciones, su arte precisamente se distingue del otro gran maestro de la escuela sevillana contemporánea, Murillo, en la falta de equilibrio y en su sentido menos amable de los santos y de sus representaciones. De ahí que fuese el artista dotado con un estilo más temperamental y más violento, agitado incluso, quien nos legase algunas de las Vanitas más impresionantes de nuestro Siglo de Oro, como son las Postrimerías del Hospital de la Caridad de Sevilla. Su vida artística estuvo entre Sevilla y Córdoba donde dejó la mayoría de los encargos más importantes que recibió. A día de hoy este sería el único, y por tanto inédito, lienzo atribuido a Juan Valdés Leal cuyo asunto es el Bautismo de Cristo, lo cual constituye ya de por sí una rareza. A diferencia de otras producciones suyas, Valdés Leal se muestra más sereno que de costumbre, centrando el sentido convulso y dramático en el paisaje agitado que está a las espaldas de los personajes centrales. Cristo y San Juan Bautista dominan el primer plano de la escena. Aquí el artista ha querido que el espectador se centré en el recogimiento y en el sentido místico del hecho religioso que se describe. Los ángeles de la esquina superior izquierda envueltos en un cortinaje azul dan el toque barroco y dinámico preciso para distraer al espectador frente a la atmósfera de recogimiento de los personajes centrales. Debe ser obra realizada a su regreso a Sevilla, después de 1656, cuando el pintor recibe el encargo de realizar el conjunto de pinturas para el Monasterio de San Jerónimo de Buenavista, actualmente dispersos entre diversos museos y colecciones en todo el mundo tras la desamortización en 1835. Bibliografía de referencia: VALDIVIESO, Enrique (1988): Juan de Valdés Leal. Sevilla: Ediciones Guadalquivir. VALDIVIESO, Enrique (1991): Catálogo de la exposición Valdés Leal. Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado. 95 x 71 cm
Juan de Valdés Leal Sevilla 1622 - 1690 La adoración de los pastores Óleo sobre lienzo Con gran marco de madera tallada y dorada de estilo rococó, probablemente del siglo XIX. Agradecemos la colaboración de Enrique Valdivieso, imprenscindible en la catalogación de esta obra 206x124,5 cm (sin marco)
Juan de Valdés Leal. Seville 1622-1690. Baptism of Christ in Jordan. Oil on canvas. Report of Doctor Enrique Valdivieso attached. 95x71,5 cm Juan de Valdés Leal Sevilla 1622 - 1690 El bautismo de Cristo en el Jordán Óleo sobre lienzo Adjunta informe de D. Enrique Valdivieso 95x71,5 cm
PORTRAIT OF A SAINT IN THE MANNER OF JUAN DE VALDES LEAL (SPAIN, 1622-1690). Oil on canvas, unsigned. Saint seated with pen and book. Restoration. 43 3/4"h. 27"w., in a frame, 48 1/4"h. 32"w.
Juan de Valdés Leal (Seville 1622-1690) The Annunciation with the inventory mark 'Nυo 42' (on the reverse of the canvas) oil on canvas 23¼ x 25½ in. (82 x 65 cm.)
Juan Valdés Leal (Seville 1622-1690) Saint Sebastian numbered '66' (lower right); and numbered and inscribed 'N.66/D.n Juan Valdes Leal' (on the reverse) oil on canvas 31¾ x 19 5/8 in. (80.7 x 49.8 cm.)
