Art Institute of Chicago
Saint Martin and the Beggar
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos; Greek, active in Spain, 1541–1614)
- Date
- c. 1597–c. 1600
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Culture
- Greece
- Department
- Painting and Sculpture of Europe
- Institution
- Art Institute of Chicago
This painting is a small replica of an altarpiece for the private family chapel of San José in Toledo, Spain. Producing smaller versions of commissioned altarpieces allowed El Greco to introduce his creations to a wider market. The composition here includes elements that would have resonated with his audience: Saint Martin wears fashionable, contemporary armor, and the walls of Toledo are visible in the distant background. Martin was a popular saint during the period, when the Catholic Church was promoting acts of charity like the gift of his cloak to a beggar as necessary for earning salvation.
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