Spanish school of the XVII-XVIII century.

Spanish school of the XVII-XVIII century.
"Evangelists".
Pair of altarpieces.
Measurements: 46 x 14 cm; 55,5 x 23 cm (frame).

This pair of reliefs in carved and polychrome wood are ascribed to the Spanish Baroque school. The figures are made in high relief. The polychrome technique is that of estofado, a laborious process characteristic of Hispanic art. The flesh tones present a naturalistic treatment.

The execution of the carving is very expressive. The faces are wide, with marked features and a solemn and direct look. The hair and beards are worked with undulating grooves that provide dynamism. The treatment of the clothes is the most distinctive element of the baroque style. The cloaks are folded wide and heavy, creating deep chiaroscuro. The folds are angular and somewhat rigid, what in the historiography of Spanish art is known as "acartonados folds", characteristic of the heritage of sculptors such as Gregorio Fernández, although here interpreted in a more schematic way. The figures are presented in a frontal and static posture, conceived for their insertion in a niche or street of an altarpiece. Their verticality and solemnity reinforce their function as pillars of faith.

Both characters carry a book in their hands, the main iconographic attribute of the Four Evangelists (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) and also common to the Apostles. The absence of their specific symbols of the tetramorph (the angel, the lion, the ox and the eagle) makes their individual identification difficult.