The Sevillian collection of the images of Mercedarians by Zurbarán
The Sevillian collection of the images of Mercedarians by Zurbarán

Summary/Abstract: The portraits of Mercedarian monks by Francisco de Zurbarán were created for the Sevillian monastery Nuestra Señora de la Merced. The artist sketched images of old-time monks based on the physiognomy of his contemporary models. The surviving paintings characterize in a simplicity of composition. Each canvas shows an image of a monk clothed in a white frock. All the presented members of the order, with the exception of Saint Serapion, are pictured with a tome, which emphasizes the intellectual skills of the selected monk. The images of the Mercedarians, which decorated the walls of monastery rooms, were the reference point, as well as a model, of the monastic life for the generations of men who were taking the veil. Francisco de Zurbarán, with the use of two colors: a dark, almost black, background and a shining white, pictured the spiritual dimension of the images, which sublimated the idea of the monastic life.

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