| Artist | |
|---|---|
| Culture | Spanish |
| Date | ca. 1650 |
| Object type | painting |
| Medium, technique | oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 171 × 120.5 cm |
| Inventory number | 97.7 |
| Collection | Old Master Paintings |
| On view | Museum of Fine Arts, First Floor, European Art 1600–1700 and British Painting 1600–1800, Cabinet 4 |
Saint Francis is one of the penitent saints; this depiction of him, deeply immersed in prayer and atonement, perfectly conveys the religious ardour of the Counter-Reformation. The apostle of poverty and love was painted in this manner on several occasions by Castillo, the founder of the Córdoba school of painting. The artist preferred a limited palette of colours, and in his works he tended to use greenish and brownish shades of grey, as in this lyrically toned work, which exhorts the viewer to meditation and self-reflection. According to some sources, Castillo often worked outdoors, drawing directly after nature. He almost certainly utilised some of these drawings to create the landscape details in this painting.
Nyerges, Éva, Spanish Paintings, A Szépművészeti Múzeum gyűjteményei/The Collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, 2008, p. 124-125, no. 55.
This record is subject to revision due to ongoing research.
