Tip: move over the painting to use the lens.
Saint Martin and the Beggar
Domenico Theotokópoulos, called El Greco · c. 1597–c. 1600
- Artist
- El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos; Greek, active in Spain, 1541–1614)
- Date
- c. 1597–c. 1600
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Size
- 110 × 63 cm (43 5/16 × 24 13/16 in.); Framed: 133.4 × 85.7 × 10.2 cm (52 1/2 × 33 3/4 × 4 in.)
- Made in
- Greece
- Style
- Mannerism
- Where to see it
- Art Institute of Chicago
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Chauncey McCormick · CC0 Public Domain · Art Institute of Chicago · image via Wikimedia Commons · see it at the museum ↗
Notes from the museum
This painting is a small replica of an altarpiece for the private family chapel of San José in Toledo, Spain. Producing smaller versions of commissioned altarpieces allowed El Greco to introduce his creations to a wider market. The composition here includes elements that would have resonated with his audience: Saint Martin wears fashionable, contemporary armor, and the walls of Toledo are visible in the distant background. Martin was a popular saint during the period, when the Catholic Church was promoting acts of charity like the gift of his cloak to a beggar as necessary for earning salvation.
Text: Art Institute of Chicago (open access). Our full story for this work is coming soon.
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