Bartolomé Esteban Murillo
Spanish Baroque painter (1617–1682)
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Key Takeaways
- Bartolomé Esteban Murillo ( mure- IL -oh, m(y)uu- REE -oh , Spanish: [baɾtoloˈme esˈteβam muˈɾiʎo] ; late December 1617, baptised 1 January 1618 – 3 April 1682) was a Spanish Baroque painter.
- These lively realistic portraits of flower girls, street urchins, and beggars constitute an extensive record of the everyday life of his times.
- In 2017–18, the two museums held an exhibition of them.
- He may have been born in Seville or in Pilas, a smaller Andalusian town.
- After his parents died in 1627 and 1628, he became a ward of his older sister Ana and her husband, Juan Agustín Lagares, who coincidentally also happened to be a barber.
Bartolomé Esteban Murillo ( mure-IL-oh, m(y)uu-REE-oh, Spanish: [baɾtoloˈme esˈteβam muˈɾiʎo]; late December 1617, baptised 1 January 1618 – 3 April 1682) was a Spanish Baroque painter. Although he is best known for his religious works, Murillo also produced a considerable number of paintings of contemporary women and children. These lively realistic portraits of flower girls, street urchins, and beggars constitute an extensive record of the everyday life of his times. He also painted two self-portraits, one in the Frick Collection portraying him in his 30s, and one in London's National Gallery portraying him about 20 years later. In 2017–18, the two museums held an exhibition of them.
Childhood
Murillo was probably born in December 1617 to Gaspar Esteban, an accomplished barber surgeon, and María Pérez Murillo. He may have been born in Seville or in Pilas, a smaller Andalusian town. It is clear that he was baptized in Santa Maria Magdalena, a parish in Seville in 1618. After his parents died in 1627 and 1628, he became a ward of his older sister Ana and her husband, Juan Agustín Lagares, who coincidentally also happened to be a barber. Murillo seemed to have remained close to the couple considering he did not leave their house until his marriage in 1645. Eleven years later, he was named the executor of Lagares' will despite his sister having already died. Murillo seldom used his father's surname, and instead took his surname from his maternal grandmother, Elvira Murillo.
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