Spanish family of painters.

Between 1571 and 1573 the Ribalta family left Solsona for Barcelona, and it must have been there that he saw paintings by Isaac Hermes. In 1581, after the death of his parents, Ribalta moved to Madrid to seek an apprenticeship. He was enormously receptive to the work of other artists; he studied the paintings in the royal collection, came in contact with the Spanish and Italian artists who were carrying out the decoration of El Escorial and developed his early style, which was strongly influenced by Italian Mannerism. There is documentary evidence for Ribalta's activity in Madrid, including his earliest known work, the signed and dated Crucifixion (?1582 or 1586; St Petersburg, Hermitage), which was painted there and which shows his interest in Venetian colouring and use of crepuscule light. In Madrid, Ribalta married In?s Pelayo, by whom he had two daughters and, in 1597, a son, (2) Juan.

The following members have entries:

• Francisco Ribalta
• Juan Ribalta

See the Abbreviations for further details.