El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos; Greek, active in Spain, 1541–1614)
Saint Martin and the Beggar
INV-6736
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos; Greek, active in Spain, 1541–1614)c. 1597–c. 1600
Saint Martin and the Beggar
El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos; Greek, active in Spain, 1541–1614) →Mannerismsixteenth centuryRenaissance16th Centurypaintingpaint
Date
c. 1597–c. 1600
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
110 × 63 cm (43 5/16 × 24 13/16 in.); Framed: 133.4 × 85.7 × 10.2 cm (52 1/2 × 33 3/4 × 4 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Chauncey McCormick
This painting is a small replica of an altarpiece for the private family chapel of San José in Toledo, Spain. Producing smaller versions of commissioned altarpieces allowed El Greco to introduce his creations to a wider market. The composition here includes elements that would have resonated with his audience: Saint Martin wears fashionable, contemporary armor, and the walls of Toledo are visible in the distant background. Martin was a popular saint during the period, when the Catholic Church was promoting acts of charity like the gift of his cloak to a beggar as necessary for earning salvation.
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