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Christus aan het kruis
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Christ on the Cross

1600 - 1615

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

h 47cm × w 33.5cm

Collection

Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

Materials

canvas; oil paint (paint)

Object Type

painting

Subject Matter

Christ on the cross on Golgotha (alone, without bystanders)

Acquisition Method

gift

Acquired

1933

Notes

Christus aan het kruis, tegen een landschap met in de verte de gebouwen van Jerusalem. Donkere wolken vullen de hemel.

Collection Type

paintings

About El Greco

1541–1614Crown of CastileRepublic of Venice

El Greco, "The Greek," worked in Spain but signed his paintings with his Greek name, Domenikos Theotokopoulos. His work shows the influence of the art of Crete, his birthplace; Crete was a center for the Byzantine artistic tradition, emphasizing abstraction and pattern rather than recording natural appearances. From 1568 to 1577, El Greco lived in Venice and Rome, where Titian's broad brushwork and bright colors, Tintoretto's sweeping movement, and Michelangelo's monumental figures reshaped his Byzantine-influenced style. He was acclaimed for his penetrating portraits, but he also received ecclesiastical commissions throughout Spain, including important altarpieces. His paintings of Toledo are among Europe's first pure landscapes.