Spanish school; first half of the 17th century.

Spanish school; first half of the XVII century.
"Child Jesus blessing".
Polychrome carved wood.
Measurements: 74 x 37 x 23 cm.
The base that raises the figure has an elaborate decoration based on elements inspired by architecture, with very moving lines that allude to its belonging to the Baroque. The Child is barefoot, resting his feet on a carved cushion. Naked, the Child raises one of his hands in a gesture of blessing, in a subtle way, harmonizing with the gesture of the face. The curly hair brings movement to the face, serene and serious, with his gaze straight ahead and his fine and delicate features. It is a magnificently worked carving at the anatomical level, in a style of transition between the Renaissance and the Baroque, which can be appreciated in the idealization of the canon, its subtle counterpoint, accompanied however by a clear naturalistic interest in the rendering of the flesh tones. Likewise, the child's face, with its large eyes and fleshy lips outlined, is extremely expressive.
It is necessary to emphasize, on the one hand, the important polychromy of the sculpture, of the flowery Baroque, and, on the other hand, the resemblance with certain works of the circle of Gaspar Núñez Delgado, sculptor of Avila origin active in Seville, between 1581 and 1606. This type of carvings were very common in churches, convents, monasteries and private chapels, with particular preference for them in the organizations and feminine environments for considering the devotion to the Child a more appropriate one for the feminine gender. Likewise, it was very common to carve Jesus full body nude, allowing him to be dressed with textiles to give greater realism. Spanish Baroque sculpture is one of the most authentic and personal examples of our art, because its conception and form of expression arose from the people and the deepest feelings that nested in it. With the economy of the State broken, the nobility in decline and the high clergy burdened with heavy taxes, it was the monasteries, the parishes and the confraternities of clerics and laymen who promoted its development, the works sometimes being financed by popular subscription. Sculpture was thus compelled to embody the prevailing ideals in these environments, which were none other than religious ones, at a time when the counter-reformist doctrine demanded from art a realistic language so that the faithful would understand and identify with what was represented, and an expression endowed with an intense emotional content to increase the fervor and devotion of the people. The religious subject is, therefore, the preferred theme of Spanish sculpture of this period, which in the first decades of the century began with a priority interest in capturing the natural, to progressively intensify throughout the century the expression of expressive values.