Pedro Atanasio Bocanegra's Circle

Circle of PEDRO ATANASIO BOCANEGRA (Granada, 1638 - 1689); second half of the XVII century.
"Virgin and Child"-
Oil on canvas.
It has a Carlos IV style frame, late eighteenth century.
Measurements: 90 x 66 cm; 121 x 89 cm (frame).
This work presents the Virgin and Child following the usual forms within the devotional painting of the Spanish Baroque: Mary appears half-length with the Child in her arms, in the foreground and on a neutral background, on which the figures stand out voluminous and directly illuminated. The painting corresponds to the theme, composition and technique of Pedro Atanasio, strongly influenced by Alonso Cano and Van Dyck. It emphasizes the love between mother and son through a naturalistic and tender representation.
Because of its style, we can relate this image to the hand of Pedro Atanasio de Bocanegra, a painter from Granada, disciple of Alonso Cano, Pedro Moya and Juan de Sevilla, the most active artist in Granada in the 1660s. His first known work is the decoration of the Corpus Christi festivities in his hometown in 1661. During the following years we find commissions such as the series of canvases he executed between 1665 and 1666 for the cloister of the convent of Nuestra Señora de Gracia, now lost; or the numerous paintings, including the "Conversion of St. Paul", which he painted between 1668 and 1672 for the altar of the school of the Society of Jesus, now the church of Saints Justo and Pastor (in situ). At the same time he was commissioned to decorate the Carthusian monastery of Granada with large scenes of the life of the Virgin. He was also appointed painter of the cathedral. After this period he went to Seville in 1686, and from there he left for the court of Madrid, where he was protected by Don Pedro de Toledo, Marquis of Mancera. Thanks to the influence of his protector, Bocanegra achieved the title of painter of the king "ad honorem" for his painting "Allegory of Justice", inspired by a Venetian print of the mid-sixteenth century, and currently preserved in the Royal Academy of San Fernando. After his stay in Madrid, Pedro Bocanegra returned to Granada. In addition to the aforementioned art galleries and religious centers, we can currently find works by this master in the Museum of Zaragoza, the Museum of Goya in Castres, the Diocesan Museum of Sacred Art in Vitoria and the Museum of Fine Arts in Granada, as well as in various private collections.