Juan José Carpio

JUAN JOSÉ CARPIO (Antequera, Málaga, 1654-Sevilla, 1710).
"Samson knocks down the columns of the temple".
Oil on canvas.
Presents restorations and two patches on the back.
Measurements: 106 x 112 cm; 114 x 120 cm (frame).
Monumental architectural scene in which a classic building, supported by Solomonic columns, collapses before the eyes of several figures who flee or fall among the rubble. Juan José Carpio's work represents with remarkable dramatism the culminating moment in which the biblical hero destroys the Philistine building, symbol of his final sacrifice. The scene takes place in a lavish architectural interior of classicist inspiration, where the Solomonic columns, characteristic of Andalusian baroque, break under the divine force of Samson. Carpio demonstrates an evident mastery of perspective and scenographic composition, resources that allow him to organize the space with depth and balance despite the narrative chaos of the collapse. The treatment of light, warm and directed, highlights both the architectural volumes and the pathetic attitudes of the figures, whose tense poses and exalted gestures reflect the emotional drama of the Sevillian baroque. The artist combines architectural monumentality with an intense symbolic charge, contrasting the heroic grandeur of the protagonist with the human fragility that surrounds him. This painting is thus part of the Baroque tradition of combining technical virtuosity, theatricality and moral message, distinctive elements of Carpio's style.
Juan José Carpio was a Spanish painter active in Seville during the transition between the 17th and 18th centuries. Information about his life is scarce, although it is known that he settled in Seville at an early age and that he participated in some of the city's major artistic commissions.
Among his earliest documented works is The Presentation of the Child in the Temple (1676), belonging to a series of six canvases dedicated to the life of the Virgin and St. Philip Neri for the church of San Alberto in Seville. These paintings, still preserved in their original location, belong to the genre of architectural caprices, where the representation of complex spatial structures acquires a leading role in front of the religious narration.
Carpio showed a particular interest in perspective and architectural settings, as can also be seen in his drawing Saint Eloy, goldsmith (1687, Museo del Prado). He also collaborated in various decorative and ephemeral projects, such as the polychromy of the images of the Holy Burial (1693) or the ornamentation of the burial mound dedicated to Mariana of Austria (1696).
Two garlands of flowers - Garland with St. Nicholas of Bari and Garland with the Virgin and Child - are also preserved in the Museum of Fine Arts of Seville. These works, conceived as trompe l'oeil, reveal his mastery of the illusionistic effect and his attention to decorative details.
His style reflects the influence of Flemish painting, very present in Seville at the time, as well as the imprint of Juan de Valdés Leal, visible in the expressiveness of the figures and the compositional dynamism. The inventory of his assets, made in 1701, mentions several works of biblical and burlesque subject matter, along with studies, sketches and Flemish prints, which confirms his interest in both the Nordic tradition and the local tendencies of late Baroque Sevillian painting.