Bartolomé Esteban Murillo Workshop (1617-1682 Spain) Birth Of The Virgin

The Birth of the Virgin"Workshop of Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617-1682)The painter: Bartolomé Esteban MurilloBartolomé Esteban Murillo (Spain, Seville 1617-1682) is a Spanish Baroque painter of the 17th century. Along with Diego Velázquez, Francisco de Zurbarán and José de Ribera, he was one of the main representatives of the Golden Age in Spanish painting and the leader of the Seville school, the second artistic center of Spain in the 17th century after Madrid. Although most of his works are religious, such as the Virgin of the Rosary, he is very famous for his portrait paintings of women and especially poor children, such as "the portrait of the young beggar" kept at the Louvre Museum, considered a scene of daily life.The paintingHere the painter based himself on models of daily life of interior scenes to create this painting entitled "the birth of the virgin". Apart from the presence of angels and the halo of the Virgin. There is no other clue that this is a painting with a religious theme, like many of Murillo's religious subjects. In the foreground: The figure of the Virgin Mary is presented with several women, probably servants, supporting her in the activities of daily life. In the background: A source of light illuminates the entire scene in the semi-darkness, and the group of Saint Anne is behind the bed, and Saint Joachim appears. The work seems unfinished to us, because shadows are left in reserve and pentimenti appear, as if on the child's knees. For the creation of the work "The Birth of the Virgin," the painter gathered all of Murillo's favorite models. We can mention a few: The Virgin Mary is easily identifiable in the foreground. The Child Jesus is in the arms of the Virgin. This child is also found in Murillo's work "Holy Family" in Saint Petersburg, Hermitage Museum. The maid in the center of the painting refers to the painting of The Child Jesus with Saint John painted by Murillo 1655-1660 and kept in the Hermitage Museum Saint Petersburg. The arm and hand of the maid in the foreground are identical to the model of the angel posed on Murillo's painting "Angels' Kitchen" Louvre Museum). The characteristics of the painting oil on canvas, old relining and restorations 17th century Canvas size: 131 x 95 cm Frame size: 150 x 105 cm