A journey through Andalusian painting from the Baroque to the mid-twentieth century, four centuries to tell an extraordinary history of painting through rich iconography and 70 masterpieces by the most prestigious Spanish masters. From the Baroque to its persistence in the first part of the century of the Enlightenment, from early romanticism to the famous Andalusian regionalist painting of the late 19th century and the social realism of the first decades of the 20th century. From El Greco, Francisco Pacheco and Juan de Roelas, the masters who paved the way for baroque artists such as Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo and Juan de Valdés Leal, who will be followed by a veritable legion of disciples and followers such as Juan de Zurbarán, Lucas Valdés and Domingo Martínez, the painters of the first half of the 18th century.

The panorama of Andalusian painting in the 19th century was different, when the Italian light attracted Spanish artists. Contacts with Italy have always been frequent and the influences very important, so much so that artists such as El Greco or Roelas resided in Italy and became acquainted with the works of the great Italian masters. 19th-century Andalusian artists regularly traveled to Italy where they studied, completed their training, and painted in both Rome and Naples. For all of them the reference is Mariano Fortuny, they attend lessons at the Chigi Academy in Rome, work in José Villegas’ studio, paint Venice live, where someone will settle for a long period. A spirit that the selection of the works proposed in the exhibition wanted to let shine through. Andalusian artists, educated in both Spain and Italy, establish a bond between the two countries that will last a long time. Many of them will benefit from scholarships created specifically to travel to Italy. All this in the shadow of the important role that the Schools of Fine Arts and National Exhibitions played in Spain and, in Italy, the Spanish Academy in Rome.

But we also find important names of Andalusian romanticism. The works of Gutiérrez de la Vega and José María Romero represent the romantic generation that learned to paint by copying the works of Murillo. Landscapes and the first costume painting, with canvases by Cabral Bejarano, Domínguez Bécquer, Cortés and Rodríguez de Guzmán. Finally, the works of the painters who will represent on canvases the typical and topical of Andalusia, such as Salinas, Ferrandiz, Rico Cejudo and García Ramos, reflecting daily life, with its characters and its anecdotes. Added to these are the canvases of Jiménez Aranda or Denis which recreate the world and clothing of the 18th century. No less important are the works included in the so-called “Orientalist painting”, the one that followed Fortuny and which testifies to the travels of Andalusian artists in the bright and colorful world of Morocco, such as Gallegos Arnosa and Villegas. Landscape painters from the Alcalá de Guadaíra School, such as Pinelo or García Rodríguez; artists between the two centuries, who, like Gonzalo Bilbao, had known the Parisian avant-garde; 20th century realists, López Mezquita, Lozano Sidro and Diego López; painters en plein air like José Arpa.

A great range of techniques and iconographies. From the purest landscape to the representation of a patio, from the “bandolero” to the refined “señorita”, from the simple market to the livestock fair, from religious painting to the theater, from orientalist scenes to the refined world of the Venetians, passing through the portrait and the scenes goyesche, everything reflects the feelings of the Andalusian people and of artists who were able to give a special character to the painting of their land.

By Enrique Pareja Lopez – Director of the Museum of Fine Arts of Seville