Bartolomé Esteban Murillo 1617–1682・Spain
やさしい聖母と、町の子どもたちの画家Painter of gentle Madonnas and street children
スペインのセビーリャに生まれ、一生のほとんどをこの町で過ごしました。やわらかな光と色で描いた聖母マリア、とくに「無原罪の御宿り」の絵で大人気になりました。また、町で暮らす貧しい子どもたちを、明るくいきいきと描いた絵でも知られます。1660年には、セビーリャに画家を育てるアカデミーを仲間と作りました。
Murillo was born in Seville, Spain, and lived there almost all his life. He became very popular for his paintings of the Virgin Mary in soft light and color, especially the Immaculate Conception. He is also known for bright, lively paintings of poor children on the streets. In 1660, he helped found an academy in Seville to train painters.
18〜19世紀のヨーロッパでは、ベラスケスよりもムリーリョのほうが有名でした。フランス軍がスペインからたくさんの作品を持ち去ったことも、彼の名を広めました。
In 18th- and 19th-century Europe, Murillo was more famous than Velázquez. French soldiers took many of his paintings from Spain, which also spread his name.
晩年、港町カディスの修道院で大きな祭壇画を描いていたとき足場から落ち、そのけががもとで数か月後に亡くなった、と伝えられています。
It is said that in his last years, he fell from a scaffold while painting an altarpiece in Cádiz. He died a few months later from his injuries.
