El Greco's connection with the court of…
1582 CE
El Greco's connection with the court of Philip II has been brief and unsuccessful, consisting first of the Allegory of the Holy League (“Dream of Philip II”; 1578–79) and second of the Martyrdom of St. Maurice (1580–82).
The latter painting has not met with the approval of the king, who promptly orders another work of the same subject to replace it.
The king may have been troubled by the almost shocking brilliance of the yellows as contrasted to the ultramarine in the costumes of the main group of the painting, which includes St. Maurice in the center.
The brushwork remains Venetian in the way that the color suggests form and in the free illusionistic and atmospheric creation of space.
Images
The Disrobing of Christ (El Espolio) (1577–1579, oil on canvas, 285 × 173 cm, Sacristy of the Cathedral, Toledo) is one of the most famous altarpieces of El Greco. El Greco's altarpieces are renowned for their dynamic compositions and startling innovations.
Locations
Regions
Southwest Europe
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