El Greco Defied the Odds to Become One of the Pathbreaking Painters in History. See Why His Work Endures Here
While museums around the globe are closed to the public, we
are spotlighting each day an inspiring exhibition that was
previously on view. Even if you can’t see it in person, allow us to
give you a virtual look.
“El Greco: Ambition and Defiance”
Art Institute of Chicago
What the museum says: “Since El Greco’s death,
writers, critics, and other observers have struggled with how and
where to situate him. Was he a Byzantine icon painter transformed
by the artistic revolution of the Italian Renaissance? A social
climber desperately seeking noble patronage? A devout believer
swept up by fervent mysticism? A proto-Modernist? Was he Greek,
Italian, or Spanish? ‘El Greco: Ambition and Defiance’ looks to his
works themselves for answers.
By charting the development of his remarkable style across 57
artworks, including large-scale canvases and more intimate panel
paintings and sculptures, the exhibition reveals El Greco as a
socially and artistically ambitious striver who expected his
immense talents to be appropriately acknowledged and rewarded.”
El Greco, The Holy Trinity
(1577–79). Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid.
Why it’s worth a look: Born Domenikos
Theotokopoulos in 1514 in Crete, the artist who came to be known as
El Greco was a proto-Modernist painter who managed to carve out a
distinct career for himself in the midst of the Italian
Renaissance, vying for commissions alongside the likes of
Michelangelo and Titian.
The exhibition traces his work from his beginnings as an icon
painter, where he learned to maximize scenes of veneration in his
flat, stylized scenes. From there, his travels to Italy and Spain
were marked by a new style that veered closer to the figurative
work of the Venetian Renaissance. The crux of the show is in the
force of will behind El Greco’s career, despite numerous roadblocks
to his success.
Throughout the show, viewers will recognize the artist’s
distinctly elongated forms and elegant compositions, which have
made him an enduring and endlessly compelling subject. While the
museum is temporarily closed, viewers can still experience the show
through virtual tours and interactive tools, including an in-depth look at the work The Assumption of the Virgin.
What it looks like:
Installation view of “El Greco: Ambition
and Defiance,” 2020. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.
El Greco, The Assumption of the
Virgin (1577–79). Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.
El Greco, A Boy Blowing on an Ember
to Light a Candle (El Soplón) (ca. 1570).
Installation view of “El Greco: Ambition
and Defiance,” 2020. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.
El Greco, View of Toledo (ca.
1598–99). Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Installation view of “El Greco: Ambition
and Defiance,” 2020. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.
El Greco, The Vision of Saint
John (ca. 1609-14). The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
El Greco, Christ Driving the Money
Changers from the Temple (ca.1570). Minneapolis Institute of
Arts.
Installation view of “El Greco: Ambition
and Defiance,” 2020. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Installation view of “El Greco: Ambition
and Defiance,” 2020. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Installation view of “El Greco: Ambition
and Defiance,” 2020. Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.
El Greco, The Adoration of the
Shepherds (1612-14). Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid.
The post El Greco Defied the Odds to Become One of the
Pathbreaking Painters in History. See Why His Work Endures Here
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