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    Delphi Complete Works of El Greco (Illustrated)
    Delphi Complete Works of El Greco (Illustrated)
    Delphi Complete Works of El Greco (Illustrated)
    Ebook529 pages56 minutes

    Delphi Complete Works of El Greco (Illustrated)

    By Peter Russell and El Greco

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    About this ebook

    Doménikos Theotokópoulos, widely known as El Greco (The Greek), was a leading painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. El Greco’s style was enriched with elements of Mannerism and the Venetian Renaissance, adopting a dramatic and expressionistic style that was met with puzzlement by his contemporaries, but gained widespread appreciation in the twentieth century. Delphi’s Masters of Art Series presents the world’s first digital e-Art books, allowing readers to explore the works of great artists in comprehensive detail. This volume presents El Greco’s complete works in beautiful detail, with concise introductions, hundreds of high quality images and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1)


    * The complete paintings of El Greco — over 250 paintings, fully indexed and arranged in chronological and alphabetical order
    * Includes reproductions of rare works
    * Features a special ‘Highlights’ section, with concise introductions to the masterpieces, giving valuable contextual information
    * Enlarged ‘Detail’ images, allowing you to explore El Greco's celebrated works in detail, as featured in traditional art books
    * Hundreds of images in colour – highly recommended for viewing on tablets and smart phones or as a valuable reference tool on more conventional eReaders
    * Special chronological and alphabetical contents tables for the paintings
    * Easily locate the paintings you wish to view
    * Includes El Greco's drawings and sculptures - explore the artist’s varied works


    Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting e-Art books


    CONTENTS:


    The Highlights
    Dormition of the Virgin
    Modena Triptych
    Purification of the Temple (Washington)
    The Entombment of Christ
    Purification of the Temple (Minneapolis)
    The Disrobing of Christ (El Espolio)
    Lady in a Fur Wrap
    The Adoration of the Name of Jesus
    The Burial of the Count of Orgaz
    Saint Peter and Saint Paul
    View of Toledo
    Saint Martin and the Beggar
    Christ on the Cross Adored by Donors
    Opening of the Fifth Seal
    Laocoön
    The Adoration of the Shepherds


    The Paintings
    The Complete Paintings
    Alphabetical List of Paintings


    Other Works
    List of Drawings and Sculptures


    Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting titles or to buy the whole Art series as a Super Set


    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPublishdrive
    Release dateSep 8, 2017
    ISBN9781786565129
    Delphi Complete Works of El Greco (Illustrated)

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    • 5/5
      Great collection of everything this "Leonardo of the North" accomplished in his life, plus multiple biographies for comparison. Very humbling to see the amount of greatness that can be produced by 1 man. Staggering!

    Book preview

    Delphi Complete Works of El Greco (Illustrated) - Peter Russell

    El Greco

    (1541-1614)

    Contents

    The Highlights

    Dormition of the Virgin

    Modena Triptych

    Purification of the Temple (Washington)

    The Entombment of Christ

    Purification of the Temple (Minneapolis)

    The Disrobing of Christ (El Espolio)

    Lady in a Fur Wrap

    The Adoration of the Name of Jesus

    The Burial of the Count of Orgaz

    Saint Peter and Saint Paul

    View of Toledo

    Saint Martin and the Beggar

    Christ on the Cross Adored by Donors

    Opening of the Fifth Seal

    Laocoön

    The Adoration of the Shepherds

    The Paintings

    The Complete Paintings

    Alphabetical List of Paintings

    Other Works

    List of Drawings and Sculptures

    The Delphi Classics Catalogue

    © Delphi Classics 2017

    Version 1

    Masters of Art Series

    El Greco

    By Delphi Classics, 2017

    COPYRIGHT

    Masters of Art - El Greco

    First published in the United Kingdom in 2017 by Delphi Classics.

    © Delphi Classics, 2017.

    All rights reserved.  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form other than that in which it is published.

    ISBN: 978 1 78656 512 9

    Delphi Classics

    is an imprint of

    Delphi Publishing Ltd

    Hastings, East Sussex

    United Kingdom

    Contact: sales@delphiclassics.com

    www.delphiclassics.com

    The Highlights

    Heraklion, the largest city and the administrative capital of the island of Crete — El Greco’s birthplace

    The house, according to tradition, where the artist was born. Today it is a museum dedicated to El Greco’s life and works.

    THE HIGHLIGHTS

    In this section, a sample of El Greco’s most celebrated works is provided, with concise introductions, special ‘detail’ reproductions and additional biographical images.

    Dormition of the Virgin

    Doménikos Theotokópoulos (widely known as ‘El Greco’, a nickname that refers to his Greek origin) was born in 1541, in either the village of Fodele or Candia (present day Heraklion) on the island of Crete.  He was descended from a prosperous urban family that had most likely been driven from Chania to Candia after an uprising against the Catholic Venetians between 1526 and 1528. El Greco’s father, Geórgios Theotokópoulos, was a merchant and tax collector. No information regarding his mother or his first wife, also Greek, have survived. The artist’s older brother, Manoússos Theotokópoulos, was a wealthy merchant and spent the last years of his life with El Greco in his Toledo home.

    Initially, El Greco received his training as an icon painter of the Cretan school, a leading centre of post-Byzantine art. In addition to painting, he would have studied the classics of ancient Greece. By the time of his death, he left a working library of 130 books, including the Bible in Greek and an annotated edition of Vasari’s Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects. By 1563 records reveal that, at the age of twenty-two, El Greco was a master (maestro Domenigo), indicating that he was already a member of a guild and presumably operating his own workshop.

    This time of the artist’s life is now regarded as his Cretan period, which includes the painting Dormition of the Virgin (c. 1566). Executed in tempera and gold on panel, it was probably completed close to the time when he decided to leave Crete. It combines post-Byzantine and Italian Mannerist stylistic and iconographic elements, while also incorporating stylistic features of the Cretan School. El Greco’s signature on the base of the central candelabrum was discovered as late as 1983. This discovery led to the attribution of three other signed works of Doménicos to the artist; namely, the Modena Triptych, Saint Luke Painting the Virgin and Child and The Adoration of the Magi.

    The Dormition of the Virgin is a Great Feast of the Eastern Orthodox, commemorating the falling asleep or death of Mary the Theotokos (Mother of God), and her bodily resurrection before being taken up into Heaven. The feast is celebrated on 15 August, preceded by a two-week fast, referred to as the Dormition Fast. From 1 August to 14 August Orthodox and Eastern Catholics fast from red meat, poultry, meat products, dairy products, fish, oil and wine.

    El Greco’s icon retains its function as an object of veneration in the Church of the Dormition of the Virgin in Syros, having probably been transferred to the island during the Greek War of Independence. It conforms closely to the established pattern for the subject, which was common in the Orthodox Church that El Greco knew well. Nevertheless, it has lost some elements of the traditional Byzantine austerity, adopting instead traits of Renaissance engravings.

    The icon deals with the belief that when the Virgin Mary passed away, she did not die, but rather slept until her soul and body were taken up to heaven and reunited. The Virgin is the central focus of the image, lying with her arms folded on her chest, placed on a bier and surrounded by various bearded figures, who mourn her loss. A vertical approach guides us to the figure of Christ, who hovers over Mary, holding her soul in his hand. Two apostles are positioned at the extremities of the horizon and a second horizontal plane is created by groups of Apostles and bishops. The vertical approach is further accentuated by the angel at the top centre.

    El Greco’s application of warm gold tones demonstrates the influence of Italian art, which would be an important source of inspiration in his early career. These golden tones are counterbalanced by shimmering red hues and the extreme brightness of Mary’s halo in the foreground. The artist’s depiction of light is harsh, as many of the figures in the upper section

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