The Assumption of the Virgin
Domenico Theotokópoulos, called El Greco
1577–79
The Assumption of the Virgin was the central image of El Greco’s first major commission, an altarpiece for the Church of Santo Domingo el Antiguo, a convent in Toledo, Spain. The painting’s subject, the raising of the Virgin Mary’s body into heaven, relates to the function of the church as the funerary monument of a wealthy noblewoman, Doña Maria de Silva; the iconography of the entire commission focuses on death and salvation.El Greco used broad, free brushwork, flickering hues, rich color harmonies, and bold figural arrangements to arouse devotional fervor in the viewer and impart a deep sense of faith. The composition is divided into two zones: the earthly sphere of the apostles and the celestial realm of the angels. El Greco masterfully compressed many figures into a tall and narrow format: In the earthly zone, the apostles’ faces and gestures express a range of emotions through their dynamic, agitated gestures and poses. They are so individually considered that it seems El Greco studied actual studio models. In contrast, the angels in the heavenly scene above are calm, graceful, and direct in their focus toward the looming figure of the Virgin Mary as she rises into their realm.
| Title | The Assumption of the Virgin |
|---|---|
| Artist | Domenico Theotokópoulos, called El Greco |
| Date | 1577–79 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Style | Mannerism |
| Dimensions | 403.2 × 211.8 cm (158 3/4 × 83 7/16 in.); Framed: 461.6 × 256.5 × 14 cm (181 3/4 × 101 × 5 9/16 in.) |
About Domenico Theotokópoulos, called El Greco
Perhaps most recognized today for his distinctly elongated figures, El Greco developed a unique style that combined the Byzantine traditions of his native Crete; the innovations of the Renaissance masters of Venice and Rome, where he spent nearly a decade of his life; and the religious themes popular in Counter-Reformation Toledo, where the artist finally settled.
Despite his inability to secure the continued patronage of the the archbishopric of Toledo and King Philip II, the two most consequential of artistic patrons in Spain, the deeply ambitious El Greco carved out a local private clientele in Toledo. He found enthusiastic patronage and developed a flourishing career—as a portraitist, a creator of wildly popular religious images for private devotion in the home, and a decorator of important large-scale family altars and chapels.
El Greco’s signature figures are often portrayed with extraordinarily expressive faces and gestures and rendered with beautiful draperies painted in high-keyed colors. While his dramatic style fell out of favor after his death, it is now seen as a forerunner of many 19th- and 20th-century art movements.
A 2020 exhibition at the Art Institute will display the newly restored Assumption of the Virgin—arguably the museum’s most important Old Master painting—and will survey the career of a painter who continually reinvented his practice and developed his remarkable style by consciously maneuvering, in Crete, Venice, Rome, and finally Toledo, in pursuit of career success and a singular artistic vision.