Francisco Herrera the Elder

For more information on Francisco Herrera, the Elder, visit Britannica.com.

(b Seville, c. 1590; d Madrid, ?29 Dec 1654). Painter and engraver. He studied under his father, Juan de Herrera Aguilar, who trained him in the Mannerist style common in Seville in the late 16th century, but the influence of Francesco Pacheco is also evident in his early works. His first recorded works as an engraver date from 1609, when he executed the frontispiece for the Constituciones del Arzobispado de Sevilla (Seville, 1609), after a design by Diego L?pez. This and the frontispiece for the Relaci?n de la fiesta de beatificaci?n de S Ignacio (Seville, 1610) show, in the garlands of fruit and flowers, a development from Mannerism towards naturalism, possibly derived from the work of Juan de Roelas. Around 1610 Herrera may have been Vel?zquez's first teacher, although Palomino (p. 128) emphasizes that his difficult character made him unsuitable for the profession of teaching. His subsequent uneasy relationship with the rigid guild system in Seville, which led to continuous litigation, seems to confirm this aspect of his personality. Between 1614 and 1616 Herrera received his first documented commissions as a painter: for a series of 12 canvases for the Fraternity of Vera Cruz in the monastery of S Francisco in Seville. Two survive: the Vision of Constantine (Seville, Hosp. Caridad) and the Virgin with Franciscan Nuns (Seville, Pal. Arzobisp.). Other paintings from this period include the Immaculate Conception (1616; Seville Cathedral) and the Arrival of the Holy Ghost (1617; Toledo, Casa & Mus. El Greco).

Part of the Herrera family

See the Abbreviations for further details.

La curación de San Buenaventura niño por San Francisco (1628).

Francisco Herrera (1576-1656) was a distinguished Spanish painter, born at Seville. He was the founder of the Seville school.

Herrera's finest paintings include "The Last Judgment" and a "Holy Family," both in churches at Seville. Others are in the Louvre, Paris. They exhibit boldness of execution with faultless technique. He is known as El viejo, "the elder," to distinguish him from his son, also a noted painter. Among his pupils was Ignacio de Iriarte and a young Diego Velázquez.

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain 1907 edition of The Nuttall Encyclopædia.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Francisco Herrera the Elder

• Francisco Herrera the Elder ar Gallery of Art

This article about a Spanish painter is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v • d • e

This Andalusian biographical article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v • d • e

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)