If there was ever an ultimate “Am I a sociopath?” test, it would have to be Jusepe de Ribera’s Penitent Magdalene painting. I dare you not to cry. It’s hard for me to put into words what moves me about this painting. Ribera’s artistry and understanding of the human psyche are beyond words. In fact,…
Category: Spanish art
Julio Romero de Torres – Mystical and Profane Love (1908)
Part of the reason why art can often be so intimidating is the constant name-dropping and the unrelenting attempts to place each and every artwork within a given temporal, spatial and cultural framework. People should be able to enjoy art without thinking of the movement it belongs to, the various influences exerted over the artist…
Diego Velázquez – The Spinners (1655 – 1660)
Once upon a time being a spinster wasn’t such a big deal. If anything, it was a nod of approval to one’s skill, for it meant being a young, unmarried woman, talented in the art of weaving and spinning. As time passed by, that meaning morphed into something else entirely, denouncing the marital status of…
Remedios Varo – Rheumatic Pain I (1948)
Largely unknown outside of Mexico, today Remedios Varo is still one of the many forgotten female artists of Surrealism. Just a quick glance at her work, that blends alchemy, the occult, architecture and science, will make you realize that the solitary women she portrayed were often tortured and enclosed, trapped in cages and towers –…
Salvador Dalí – Galatea of the Spheres (1952)
When Salvador Dalí fell in love with Gala she was married to the French poet Paul Éluard, while the Spaniard was on the brink of gaining recognition for his visionary talent. It was three years before Dalí would paint his memorable work, The Persistence of Memory. Perhaps Gala had an innate ability to spot undetected talent,…
Francisco Goya – A Bad Night (1797 – 1799)
After a mysterious illness led to the loss of his hearing in 1792, Francisco Goya’s art became darker and more anchored in the grim realities of everyday life. It took the Spaniard a few years to fully return to etching and painting, time during which he started experimenting with different styles. It was during those…
