Spanish school of the late sixteenth century-early seventeenth century.

Spanish school of the late sixteenth century-early seventeenth century.
"San Roque".
Oil on canvas.
Measurements: 91 x 51 cm; 103 x 64 cm (frame).

This devotional painting pays homage to the figure of San Roque, patron saint of the plague-stricken and symbol par excellence of the Christian pilgrim. The composition responds to the canons of the late Renaissance language, already impregnated with certain presages of the tenebrism that would flourish in the Baroque.

The saint stands at the vertical axis of the work, occupying almost the entire frame, which gives his presence an imposing iconic centrality. He is dressed in the pilgrim's tunic (of a deep red, symbol of charity and martyrdom) and a dark, almost black or grayish cloak, which gives gravity to the whole. He discreetly raises the tunic to the knee, revealing the miraculous wound, testimony of his suffering and redemption.

At his feet, the faithful dog refers to the hagiographic episode in which Providence helps the saint through animal loyalty. The background, although barely sketched, suggests a wild landscape, reduced to its minimum expression by the monumentality of the figure. However, this slight glimpse of the earthly world is sublimated by a sky of faint clouds, furrowed by a timid break of glory: a solitary lightning bolt, symbol of divine favor, pierces a cloud as an announcement of transcendence.

The work, in its compositional sobriety and restrained expressiveness, is inscribed within a counter-reformist spirituality, where devotion is manifested not so much in drama as in the stoic dignity of sanctified suffering.