Sevillian school; second half of the XVII century.

Sevillian school; second half of the seventeenth century.
"Calvary".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Measurements: 84 x 62 cm.
This painting of the Sevillian school of the seventeenth century represents a deeply emotional scene of the Crucifixion of Christ, a central theme in the sacred art of the time. In the center of the composition, Jesus appears crucified, with a halo that highlights his divinity, while his body reflects a serene surrender to sacrifice. To his left, the Virgin Mary, dressed in the traditional colors of her iconography, red and blue, shows an expression of deep pain and resignation, while she holds a cloth to her face, symbolizing her affliction. On the right, St. John the Evangelist raises his hands in a gesture of supplication and devotion, looking at him with reverence and anguish. In the background, small figures, probably other witnesses to the scene, remain in the gloom, while the dark landscape evokes the somber atmosphere surrounding the moment of Christ's death. Symbolic elements such as the skull and bones at the foot of the cross add a meditative dimension of mortality and redemptive sacrifice.
This work shares characteristics with the style of Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, one of the greatest exponents of the Sevillian school. As in Murillo's paintings, here we perceive an effort to convey the spirituality and emotion of the moment, especially through the expressions of the Virgin and St. John, which reflect the pathos and spiritual connection with the viewer. However, there are marked differences in the use of color and light. While Murillo used a soft and luminous palette, with delicate gradations that emphasized the purity and humanity of the characters, this work uses a stronger contrast between light and shadow, which adds a dramatism more typical of the influences of Francisco de Zurbarán. The dark background and the tenebrist atmosphere reinforce this comparison, although the composition of this painting has a narrative dynamism that separates it from the austerity characteristic of Zurbarán.
In this sense, the work also distances itself from the sweet and accessible character of Murillo's figures, whose faces and expressions tend to transmit a serene grace. Here, the representation is more solemn and seeks to provoke in the viewer an intense spiritual reaction. The combination of theatricality, devotion and symbolic details, such as the skull and the distant witnesses, make this painting a clear example of the Sevillian artists' aim to move and bring the public closer to the divine mystery through a striking and deeply emotional visual representation.