The Crucifixion1627
Christ hangs on a rough wooden cross against a deep black background, his body brilliantly lit and modelled so firmly that it seems carved rather than painted, the white loincloth falling in crisp, sculptural folds. More about this work
About this work
Christ hangs on a rough wooden cross against a deep black background, his body brilliantly lit and modelled so firmly that it seems carved rather than painted, the white loincloth falling in crisp, sculptural folds. Zurbarán painted it in 1627 for the Dominican monastery of San Pablo el Real in Seville, where it hung in a dim chapel; the early biographer Antonio Palomino reported that visitors took it for a sculpture. Christ’s feet are nailed separately, following the guidance of Spanish religious writers of the time, and a small painted paper at the foot of the cross carries the artist’s signature.
Written by Ochre Editions.
What you’re looking at
A work made of oil on canvas.
Description from the Art Institute of Chicago.
How it was made
- Oil paint
- Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.
Francisco de Zurbarán
Spanish, 1598–1664 · Born in Fuente de Cantos; died in Madrid.
Zurbarán worked chiefly in Seville, where religious orders commissioned him to paint cycles for their monasteries. His saints and monks, set against dark grounds and modelled with strong, sculptural light, combine austerity with close attention to the textures of cloth and wood. He also painted a handful of austere still lifes. As taste in Seville shifted towards Murillo’s softer style, he moved to Madrid in 1658, where he died.
Written by Ochre Editions.
Rights and the museum’s record
Public domain. The Art Institute of Chicago has dedicated this image to the public domain under CC0, so anyone may copy, adapt and use it, for any purpose, without asking. Our prints and files are reproductions made from the museum’s image; the museum doesn’t endorse them.
- Object number
- 1954.15
- Credit
- Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
- Type
- Painting
- Department
- Painting and Sculpture of Europe
- Licence
- CC0 1.0 Universal
- Museum record
- See it on the museum’s site
