Francisco de Zurbaran — Baroque Painter of Religious Contemplation
Mark Paskewitz is a respected presence in the Southern California pharmaceutical community who holds executive responsibilities with the National Institute of Clinical Research, Inc. Passionate about art, Mark Paskewitz has visited numerous museums and enjoys artists ranging from Renaissance masters to Impressionists.
Among his favorite artists of the Baroque era are the contemporaneous Spanish painters Diego Velazquez and Francisco de Zurbaran. Living from 1598 to 1664, Zurbaran studied in Seville and started his own workshop in Llerena. A key influence during this time was the religious movement Quietism, which emphasized silence and inner withdrawal as a way of connecting with God. This led to his creating works for monasteries spanning a number of disciplines, including the Franciscan, Dominican, and Trinitarian.
Moving back to Seville, Zurbaran continued to focus on monasteries before receiving a commission from Velazquez, who was overseeing decorations at Madrid’s newly built Royal Palace. Zurbaran’s resulting 1634 masterworks depict historic battle scenes and are now featured alongside Velazquez’ works in the same series at the Prado.
Returning to Seville, Zurbaran held the honorary title of Painter to the King and created works that were increasingly defined by a stark, meditative religiosity. Although his saints had no halos, they possessed a weighty presence that marked them unmistakably as holy.
