_Velazquez and Murillo_
'The more the artist studies Nature, the nearer he approaches to
the true and perfect idea of art.'--Sir J. REYNOLDS.
On the 15th of June, in the year 1599, Diego Rodriguez de Silva y
Velazquez was born in Seville. Eighteen years later affords the record
of birth of Murillo. Contemporary, or nearly so, they began their lives
in the same environment, yet from their earliest youth they tended to
develop upon divergent lines. The young Velazquez, at the age of
thirteen, became the pupil of the vigorous Herrera, while Murillo
entered the school of the academic Juan de Castillo.
It was reserved for Velazquez to break away from the traditional
limitations of the Sevillian school, while the work of Murillo was to
develop them to their fairest fruition.
The national manner, begun by Herrera and developed by Zurbaran, was, by
the genius of Velazquez, carried to perfect fulfilment.
The grave and truthful simplicity of his pictures is unsurpassed among
the artistic records of any nation. His supreme effort was directed to
the portrayal of Nature. With unerring judgment he selected the
essential details of a composition, and painted them with unflinching
fidelity. He depicted each colour precisely as the lighting of his
canvas revealed it to him. He is the master of chiaroscuro, by the
perfect unity of his tones. His style is wholly personal, his pictures
bear pre-eminently the mark of individual expression. From his earliest
youth this was his method of work. 'He kept,' Pacheco tells us, in the
account he gives of his pupil and son-in-law, in his _Arte de la
Pintura_, 'a peasant lad, as an apprentice, who served him as a study in
different actions and postures--sometimes crying, sometimes
laughing--till he had grappled with every difficulty of expression; and
from him he executed an infinite variety of heads, in charcoal and chalk
on blue paper, by which he arrived at certainty in taking likeness.' In
this way did Velazquez train his power; and we are able to comprehend
the wonderful portraits, which have rendered the House of Austria
familiar to the world, when we picture the youth drawing his slave,
again and yet again, in different attitudes and ever varied changes of
expression.
This, then, was the divergence between the methods of Velazquez and
Murillo. The one painted Nature as she was; the other depicted men and
women as they never could be, but in the guise of saints, according to
the desires of the Catholic Church. It is in this dis-similarity of
their aims, that we shall find the explanation of the fact, which cannot
fail to impress the visitor to Seville, that, while the city abounds in
the works of Murillo, no single picture from the hand of Velazquez is to
be found in Cathedral, Church or Museo. The city of his birth is
destitute of any commemoration of his genius, if we exclude a few
pictures, of very doubtful authenticity, to be found in some of the
private collections.
The art of Seville was maintained by the munificence of the Church.
Painting was the handmaid of the Catholic religion. Pictures were
painted for the glory of God; they were valued as aids in the due
performance of religious observance rather than as works of art. For
the artist whose supreme desire was to follow truth Seville was no home.
Realism was opposed to the very essence of the Catholic mind. The
mediæval spirit did not exist in Velazquez, the most modern of all the
old masters; he yearned for a freer and wider scope for the development
of his genius.
In March, 1621, Philip III. died, and was succeeded by his young son,
Philip IV., who at once began to collect about the throne the literary
and artistic genius of the day.
Accompanied by Pacheco, Velazquez went to Madrid and craved an audience
of the King. The favour was denied, and after some months of waiting,
the young artist returned to Seville. Next year he again sought the
metropolis. One of the Canons of Seville Cathedral, Don Juan Fonseca,
had obtained a post in the King's service; Velazquez painted his
portrait. It was carried to the palace before it was dry, and in an hour
the whole court had seen it. 'It excited the admiration of the capital,'
writes Pacheco, exulting in the success of his favourite, 'and the envy
of those of the profession, of which I can bear witness.' Velazquez's
position was assured. He was formally received into the King's service,
and became a member of the royal household. His genius was lost to
Seville. He is classed among the artists of Castile, and to study his
works it is necessary to visit, not Seville, but the Prado Museo, at
Madrid.
Of the pictures he painted in his youth none remain in Seville. The most
famous are The Water Carrier, or Aguador, now in the collection of the
Duke of Wellington, at Apsley House; The Omelet belonging to the late
Sir Francis Cook; St. John in Patmos and The Woman and the Dragon, the
property of Sir Bartle Frere; The Epiphany in the Prado Museo; and The
Adoration of the Shepherds in the National Gallery.
The Water Carrier and The Omelet are studies of street life, finished
with great care; a class of picture known as _bodegones_, often painted
by the Spanish artists. The former is the finer work. It is a
magnificent instance of Velazquez's power during his student days.
Either a study for this picture, executed by Velazquez himself, or a
copy by one of his pupils, can be seen in the house of Murillo. The
courteous owner, Señor Don López Cepero, is always willing to show his
valuable collection of pictures. He believes the work to be a genuine
Velazquez, and it is just possible that it may be so, and in any case it
is a study of much interest. The Corsican water-seller, clad in his
brown frock, a well-known figure in the streets of Seville, hands a
glass of water to a boy, while in the distance another figure is dimly
discerned, with his face buried in an earthenware mug. The background is
very dark; the figures alone stand in the light. There is no scenery,
and the accessories are painted with absolute truth.
* * * * *
While the art of Velazquez was unsuited to the city of his birth, the
works of Murillo breathed the very spirit of the life around him. His
pictures represent the religious emotion of his period; they may
fittingly be termed, 'the embodied expression of Spanish Catholicism,
during the seventeenth century.'
This fact in a large measure accounts for the popularity of Murillo, and
the rapid recognition which his merits received at the hands of his
countrymen. His art appealed pointedly to the hearts of the people; the
expression of his genius was comprehensible to them all. He speedily
became the favourite artist in Spain, and his fame gradually extended
throughout Europe.
Murillo's artistic career may be divided into four periods. During the
first he was needy and unrecognised, gaining a precarious livelihood by
painting rude pictures for the Feria, a weekly fair, held every Thursday
at the northern end of the Old Alameda, in front of the Church of All
Saints. The artistic training he had received was slight. Juan de
Castillo, who, as a relative of the family, had taught the boy free of
charge, left Seville, and the young Murillo was too poor to enter the
schools of Herrera, Pacheco, or Zurbaran. He was obliged to toil with
strenuous effort to support himself and his sister, who was dependent
upon him.
We can picture the future genius of Seville, standing in the market of
the Feria, exposing his pictures for sale. He would often paint them
while he waited, or would alter each composition to suit the fancy of an
intending purchaser. Ambitious dreams fired his imagination. Pedro de
Moya, an artist friend, had been to Rome, and had returned imbued with
the glories of the metropolis of art. Murillo aspired to visit Italy,
and with this hope he toiled, until he had saved a sufficient sum to
take him to Madrid. He at once sought the counsel and protection of his
old friend Velazquez. The court artist received him with the utmost
kindness. He gave him lodging in his own apartments, and obtained
permission for him to work in the Royal Galleries. A new world was
revealed to the young Murillo. For two years he worked, then Velazquez
advised him to go to Italy, to continue his studies in Rome, or
Florence. He offered him letters of introduction, and did all in his
power to induce him to undertake the journey, but for some reason
Murillo declined his offer and returned to Seville.
His earliest work was to paint a series of studies of the Legend of St.
Francis, for the Franciscan Convent, formerly situated behind the Casa
del Ayuntamiento. They at once assured his fame; the unknown artist
became the most popular painter in opulent Seville. The only person who
failed to acknowledge his genius was Francisco Pacheco. Jealous for the
fame of Velazquez, and unable to forgive the lack of appreciation which
Seville had tended to his favourite, he makes no mention of Murillo or
his works, in his _Arte de la Pintura_; a curious omission only to be
accounted for by private enmity.
None of the Franciscan cycle of pictures are in Seville, and only two,
The Heavenly Violinist, and The Charity of St. Diego, are in Spain. They
were carried away by the French during the War of Independence.
The influence of the two years Murillo had spent in Madrid can readily
be traced in these early paintings. The outlines are distinct and in
some cases hard; while the tone of the shadows, and the treatment of the
lights follows the method of the realists, and affords little or no sign
of the melting indecision of outline, the manner so prevalent in his
later work. The pictures belonging to this period are said to be painted
in the _Estilo Frio_, or cold style. The best instance in Seville, is La
Anunciación de Nuestra Señora, in the Museo.
In his later work Murillo abandoned the influence of Ribera, Zurbaran,
Velazquez and the Spanish realists; he developed a manner more personal,
and more in harmony with the mystic trend of his emotions. His outlines
became softer, and his forms rounder, while his colour began to assume
tones of melting transparency. A Spaniard writing of his work at this
period remarks that his flesh tints seem to be painted '_con sangre y
leche_' (with blood and milk).
The first picture painted in this manner, which is known as the _Estilo
Calédo_ (warm style), is Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, executed for
the brotherhood of the True Cross, in 1655, for the sum of 2500 _reals_.
To this period belong the fine portraits of St. Leander and St. Isidore,
in the _Sacristía Mayor_, of the Cathedral; the Nativity, which formerly
hung behind the high altar, until it was carried away by Soult; and the
celebrated St. Anthony of Padua, receiving the infant Christ, still to
be seen in the _Cap del Bautistero_.
The portraits of St. Leander and St. Isidore are among the finest
instances of the powers of Murillo. All the accessories are painted with
the utmost care, and perhaps the only criticism which can be offered is
that the figures are rather short. These portraits must be classified
with Murillo's fine _genre_ studies--those charming representations of
gipsy life and beggar boys, by which he is largely known in this
country, but of which Seville unfortunately possesses not a single
example.
The Nativity of the Virgin was received by Seville with a burst of
enthusiasm. The St. Anthony was painted in 1565, the Chapter paying for
it the sum of 10,000 _reals_. The light in the dim chapel renders it
very obscure. A brown-frocked monk kneels at a table, and gazes at the
Heavenly Child, who descends towards him. Upon the table rests a vase of
lilies, and the story runs that they were so life-like that the birds,
flying around the Cathedral, used to come and peck at them, while
Murillo was engaged in painting them. The picture was restored, and
almost repainted in 1833, which has doubtless done much to destroy its
charm.
Shortly after this time Murillo adopted his third and last manner, known
as "el Vaporoso," in which the outlines are entirely lost, obliterated
in a misty effect of light and shade.
The first pictures painted in this method were executed for the Church
of Santa Maria la Blanca, to illustrate the legend of our Lady of the
Snow. They were carried away by the French and placed in the Louvre; but
were rescued, and are now in the Académia de Belles Artes, at Madrid.
The Virgin, appearing to the wife of a Roman senator, and telling her
where she will find the patch of snow upon which to erect a church to
her honour, is one of the loveliest of Murillo's conceptions.
The great cycle of pictures for the Hospital de la Caridad were painted
about this time, being completed between the years 1660 and 1674. Three
of the pictures stand in their original position, Moses striking the
Rock, The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, and the Charity of St. Juan
de Dios. The figure of the Prophet, in Moses striking the Rock, Sir W.
Stirling-Maxwell says, 'is one of impressive dignity.' Clad in pale
yellow robe and violet mantle, he occupies the central position in the
picture. Behind him stands Aaron, with mystic breastplate, and robe of
subdued white. Around the two prophets are grouped numerous figures,
men, women and children, all quenching their thirst with feverish
eagerness. This has given the picture its name of La Sed (the thirst).
The figures bear no resemblance to the men and women of Palestine, they
are ordinary Spanish peasants, such as Murillo would see in the streets
around him. This custom of introducing common types into his scriptural
compositions, Professor Carl Justi considers as one proof of
Murillo's genius. The personality of Christ, in the Miracle of the
Loaves and Fishes, lacks the force of the ancient prophet, and the work
as a whole is inferior to its companion picture. The Angel appearing to
St. Juan de Dios, as he sinks under the burden of a sick man, well
represents the later manner of Murillo. In colour this picture is good,
the tones are finer than in either of the other works. The five
remaining pictures, which completed this great series, were carried away
by Soult. The finest, St. Elizabeth of Hungary washing the Feet of
Beggars, is now at Madrid. The Return of the Prodigal is in the
collection of the Duke of Sutherland. Two others, The Healing of the
Paralytic, and Abraham with the Angels, are in England, while the last,
St. Peter released from Prison, is in St. Petersburg.
[Illustration: THE GUARDIAN ANGEL
_Murillo_]
The final work of importance undertaken by Murillo, was the execution of
a series of twenty pictures for the Capuchin Convent of the Franciscans.
The convent was destroyed in 1835, when its treasures were scattered.
The greater number of the pictures are now in the Museo; the immense
altar-piece of the Porciuncula is in Madrid; while the Angel de la
Guarda is in the _Sacristía de los Cálices_, having been presented to
the Cathedral, by the Franciscans, in 1814. There is great beauty in
this composition; which was founded upon the text, Matthew xviii. 10.
An angel, in a rich yellow robe and royal purple mantle, points with one
hand to heaven, while with the other she tenderly leads a lovely child.
It is painted with great lightness of touch; the diaphanous drapery of
the child's dress has a transparency of texture rarely seen in Spanish
pictures.
The life of Murillo was nearing its completion. He worked until its
very close; and devotion to the art he loved was the immediate cause of
his death. In 1678 he painted for the Hospital de los Venerables a very
fine Conception, which has since been lost; he also executed two
pictures for the Augustine Convent, now in the Museo. In 1681 he was
summoned to Cadiz to paint an altar-piece for the Capuchins of that
city. The work was nearly completed, when he fell from the scaffolding,
upon which he was standing in order to reach upper portions of the
picture. He received an internal injury, and returned to Seville to die,
on April 3, 1682.
The whole city sorrowed for his loss. His obsequies were conducted with
great magnificence. His bier was carried by four marquesses and four
knights. He was buried in the Church of Santa Cruz, beneath his
favourite picture, The Descent from the Cross, by Pedro Campaña. The
spot was marked by a simple marble slab, upon which was engraved,
according to his own desire, his name, the figure of a skeleton, and the
words '_Vive Meritorus_.'
The position Murillo occupies in the heart of Andalusia is almost
unprecedented. To this day a picture of great merit is in Seville termed
a 'Murillo.' What Cervantes was in literature Murillo was in art. Sir
David Wilkie justly remarks, in his comparison of Velazquez and Murillo,
'Velazquez by his high technical excellence is the delight of all
artists; Murillo, adapting the higher subjects of art to the commonest
understanding of the people, seems, of all painters, the most universal
favourite.'
Artist. Pictures. Where Situated.
Velazquez (?) Water Carrier. House of Murillo.
(1599-1660).
" A few doubtful Private Collections.
works.
THE PRINCIPAL WORKS OF MURILLO IN SEVILLE CATHEDRAL.
Artist. Pictures. Where Situated.
Murillo Angel de la Guarda. Sacristía de los
(1617-1682). Cálices.
" SS. Leander and Sacristía Mayor.
Isidore.
" Conception. Sala Capitular.
" St. Anthony of Cap del Bautisterio.
Padua.
" Moses striking the Hospital de la
Rock. Caridad.
" Miracle of the Ditto.
Loaves and Fishes.
" Charity of St. Juan Ditto.
de Dios.
" Seventeen works Museo.
from the Capuchin
Convent, and
other works.
Other Pictures in many of the Churches.