It is often thought that "El Greco" is a Spanish name. But it's just a nickname. "El Greco" means "Greek". It was common at the time to refer to people according to their geographical origin.
El Greco is very recognisable as a painter. His works depict characters with thin, elongated, features, which he illuminates as if with a spotlight, as one would do for actors in a theatre.
Here he brings his style to bear on a scene at the heart of the New Testament: Jesus in the garden of olive trees.
While he was regarded in Jerusalem as an agitator, Jesus knew that he would soon be arrested, and undoubtedly condemned. He, therefore, went up into the Mount of Olives on a hill in Jerusalem to pray with his most faithful disciples, Peter, James and John. But his three companions fell asleep! Even though El Greco represented them in the foreground, they are in the shadows, leaving Jesus Christ alone.
He is filled with despair, facing a future that he knows will be tragic. But in this moment of anguish, an angel comes to meet him. She offers him a chalice. Among Christians, this cup symbolises Christ's sacrifice. By accepting the cup, he accepts his destiny. He is more serene as he faces the approaching danger: look in the background, the soldiers are coming to arrest him!
After his trial, he will be condemned to be crucified, but this is another story ...
Inventory number: P.10
It is often thought that "El Greco" is a Spanish name. But it's just a nickname. "El Greco" means "Greek". It was common at the time to refer to people according to their geographical origin.
El Greco is very recognisable as a painter. His works depict characters with thin, elongated, features, which he illuminates as if with a spotlight, as one would do for actors in a theatre.
Here he brings his style to bear on a scene at the heart of the New Testament: Jesus in the garden of olive trees.
While he was regarded in Jerusalem as an agitator, Jesus knew that he would soon be arrested, and undoubtedly condemned. He, therefore, went up into the Mount of Olives on a hill in Jerusalem to pray with his most faithful disciples, Peter, James and John. But his three companions fell asleep! Even though El Greco represented them in the foreground, they are in the shadows, leaving Jesus Christ alone.
He is filled with despair, facing a future that he knows will be tragic. But in this moment of anguish, an angel comes to meet him. She offers him a chalice. Among Christians, this cup symbolises Christ's sacrifice. By accepting the cup, he accepts his destiny. He is more serene as he faces the approaching danger: look in the background, the soldiers are coming to arrest him!
After his trial, he will be condemned to be crucified, but this is another story ...
Inventory number: P.10
