Sevillian painter, possibly LUCAS VALDÉS (Sevilla, 1661-Cádiz, 1725), ca. 1700

Sevillian painter, possibly LUCAS VALDÉS (Seville, 1661-Cádiz, 1725), ca. 1700
"Vision of celestial and saints".
Oil on canvas.
Measurements: 39.5 x 29 cm; 49 x 38.5 cm (frame).
The style reveals a clear interest in the ascensional composition, where the earthly scene rises towards a celestial vision, articulated by clouds, golden lights and a dynamic arrangement of the figures. The brushstroke is loose but expressive, with a warm chromatism, ochers, golds and reds, which refers to the heritage of Murillo and Valdés Leal, although with a more serene and contemplative tone. This brings the piece closer to the circle of Lucas Valdés (Seville, March 1661-Cádiz, 1725).
Born in Seville in 1661 and died in Cadiz in 1725, he was a Spanish painter closely linked to the Sevillian artistic environment of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Son of the famous Juan de Valdés Leal, he received his early training in the family workshop, where he assimilated from a very young age the basics of drawing, painting and Baroque composition. At an early age, he also showed a notable inclination for engraving, a discipline in which he excelled at an early age when he produced, at barely eleven years old, a series of plates dedicated to the Sevillian celebrations for the canonization of Saint Ferdinand.
The theme of the work, a celestial vision with saints, responds to one of the most characteristic motifs of the Sevillian religious Baroque: the direct connection between the human world and the divine. In the upper part, the celestial figures, enveloped in a supernatural light, symbolize the glory and divine intercession, while in the lower plane the saints appear humanized, with emotive gestures and attitudes of adoration or revelation. This duality reinforces the theological message of hope and salvation, making the transcendent accessible to the viewer.