Description of the picture:
A boy with a dog – Bartolome Esteban Murillo. Between 1655-1660. Canvas, oil. 70×60
Bartolome Murillo, a prominent master of the Spanish school of the XVII century, enjoyed great success among his contemporaries and was even proclaimed the chapter of Seville Cathedral as the best painter of the city. The artist wrote religious and small everyday scenes, but he especially liked to portray children. Sometimes he wrote them in groups or two at a time, and sometimes alone, as in the picture “Boy with a Dog.”
The artist does not idealize his characters, with all the charm of the boy, his cheerful face is common, and the costume is simple and poor. The child has pronounced national features, manifested in poses, movements, gestures. The look of his roguish eyes, facial expression and habits breathe life.
Murillo also proved himself to be a wonderful colorist: the combination of blue sky and soft yellow tone of the boy’s vest, dark deep color of the jacket and cold, slightly pearly skin tones create an exquisite color scheme.
Unlike the works of many of his colleagues, the work of the painter was very appreciated. I especially liked his genre scenes, which are now stored in many museums around the world."