Artists with their own name in the Santiago Cathedral
Discover the painters who left their mark on the Cathedral's collection
ReadMaster Mateo (1929) by Juan Luís López GarcíaThe Catedral de Santiago Foundation
Throughout the centuries, the Cathedral was a space of artistic creation in which the main transformations of European art took shape. Among workshops and anonymous authors, some names left their mark on the collection and on the development of Galician painting.
Chapel of Sancti Spiritus (16th century)The Catedral de Santiago Foundation
Painting in the Renaissance
In the 16th century, the renovation of the cathedral building and the opening of new spaces boosted the demand for commissions for furniture and decorative elements. The works acquired during this century introduced a stylistic evolution towards the Renaissance.
Juan B. Celma
Juan Bautista Celma, an Aragonese painter, sculptor and master mason, was a key figure in the Galician Renaissance. He settled in Santiago in 1564 and left his mark through commissions for the cathedral, integrating Italian Mannerism into the sacred art of Santiago de Compostela.
He executed a series of five panels depicting the Glorious Mysteries painted on both sides. Only one fragment has survived, showing the Resurrection on the front and the Adoration of the Magi on the back, reflecting his knowledge of Italian painting.
Mural painting in the main chapel and transept of the Cathedral of Santiago (1764-1768) by Gabriel FernándezThe Catedral de Santiago Foundation
The arrival of the Baroque
In 17th-18th centuries, the cathedral was impregnated with Baroque: the prominence of the archbishopric in those years and a new spirituality, promoted by the Council of Trent, encouraged patrons and artists to develop a more emotionally charged and pedagogical style of painting.
Juan A. García de Bouzas
Juan Antonio García de Bouzas (1680-1755) is considered the leading painter of the Galician Baroque period. After studying with Luca Giordano in Madrid, he worked for 39 years as the cathedral's main painter, and a large number of his oil paintings have survived.
His Saint James reproduces the sculptural model of Master Mateo for the high altar. Decorated with elements characteristic of this century, it introduces novelties such as the sculpted cape, the medallions with his disciples, and Jacobean symbols: the pumpkins and the knapsack.
Life of Saint James the Greater (1780) by Manuel Arias VarelaThe Catedral de Santiago Foundation
The Compostela school of painting
In the first half of the 18th century, he formed an early ‘school of painting’ in Compostela, instructing disciples such as Domingo de Uzal, Manuel Arias Varela and Gabriel Fernández, who left their mark on the cathedral's art collection and its spaces.
Domingo A. de Uzal
The cathedral collection conserves pieces by such disciples, such as this one by Domingo de Uzal, in which he depicts a theme that was particularly popular in the 18th century: Saint James appearing at the Battle of Clavijo, in aid of the troops of Ramiro I against the Saracens.
Gregorio Ferro
After training at the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Gregorio Ferro (1742-1812) returned to Galicia to become one of the leading representatives of academicism. The five works in the collection summarise the precepts of neoclassical taste.
The work depicts Christ's forgiveness of the adulterous woman through a balanced composition and figures interacting in a theatrical manner. The Solomonic columns that structure the scene and the vibrant colour palette reflect Ferro's transition to neoclassicism.
Ecce Homo and Our Lady of Sorrows (1848) by Juan J. Cancela del RíoThe Catedral de Santiago Foundation
Contemporary painting
In the 19th century, the church underwent a socio-political crisis that affected artistic commissions. With the rediscovery of the apostolic sepulchre in 1879, new works and projects were promoted that led to a golden age for painting that has lasted up to the present day.
Modesto Brocos y Gómez
Modesto Brocos was a painter and engraver from Compostela who, after training in Europe and America, settled in Brazil. He returned temporarily to Rome to paint his most personal work: a tribute to the Jacobean traditions that he said he had ‘dreamed of before becoming a painter’.
Completed in 1899, the triptych illustrates important Jacobean episodes: the Preaching, the Translation of his remains and the Inventio, framed by cathedral-inspired architecture. It is kept in the sacristy, away from the public, after being exhibited in Paris in 1900.
The painter Juan Luis
Juan Luis López (1894-1984), educated in major European cities, applied symbolist and post-impressionist influences to his genre painting. A key figure of the Generation of 16, he was a prize-winner at the National Exhibitions of 1917 and 1922, obtaining commissions from the Church of Compostela.
The Pentecost Triptych, commissioned for a new altarpiece in 1920, fuses Gothic style with the artist's modern influences. Mary and the Apostles are depicted on the central panel, while Saint Francis and Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, pilgrim saints, occupy the side panels.
Panels for the Ibero-American Exposition of Seville (1929) by Juan Luis López GarcíaThe Catedral de Santiago Foundation
Panels for the Ibero-American Exhibition in Seville in 1929
These panels by Juan Luis, commissioned for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, mark a new stage in his work, far removed from Symbolism and Pre-Raphaelism. Influenced by Pointillism and Van Gogh, they illustrate the history of Compostela and the construction of the cathedral.
Chapel of San FernandoThe Catedral de Santiago Foundation
The cathedral's pictorial collection, through its works and authors, narrates the pulse of each era: the socio-political changes, its interests and sensibilities. It is a living legacy that illuminates the artistic evolution of Galicia and the key role of the temple in the history of Compostela.
Director: Ramón Yzquierdo Peiró
Texts: Ana Eiroa Candal
Images: Fundación Catedral de Santiago.
This exhibition is part of the project Historia Pinxit. Spaces, themes and characters in the painting of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, framed within the FO200 programme of grants to foundations and non-profit organisations in the Province of A Coruña, owners of museums, interpretation centres or libraries for the development of cultural activities during the year 2024 of the Provincial Council of A Coruña.
