4.05.1622 – 15.10.1690

One of the most valuable collections of paintings in Seville is in the church at the Hospital of Mercy. The main works on the decoration of the temple were performed by the leading artists of the Seville school – Bartolomeo Murillo and Valdes Lehal. In the history of Spanish painting, memories of the mutual dislike of two great masters of the Baroque era were preserved. This dislike is often associated with the manifestation of the envy of Leal to his more famous colleague. However, the real reason for their conflict is a huge difference in their characters. This is primarily their paintings say. Nerve lines, a dramatic play of chiaroscuro, pessimistic stories and the bright, open colors of Valdes Leal are opposed to the elegant, soft painting of Murillo.

Juan de Valdez Leal was born on May 4, 1622 in Seville in the family of a jeweler. About the early years of the artist little is known, but there is evidence that he began to receive education in Cordoba from the master Antonio del Castillo. In 1647, Valdez Leal married a girl of noble birth named Elizabeth, and in 1649 the young family had to leave Cordoba because of the plague epidemic. The artist returned to his native city, where he lived until the end of his days.

The most significant work of the early period of the artist’s work is a large cycle “The Story of St. Clara”, performed in 1653-1654. for the monastery in Carmona. In 1657, Valdes Leal receives an order for the Hieronymus monastery for a series of paintings from the life of St. Jerome and the large portrait work of the monks themselves. Despite the seeming carelessness of the figure, the figures of the monks impress with their individuality. In 1658, the artist begins a large order – for the monastery of the Carmelites, he painted the altar with scenes from the life of St. Elijah.

Juan Valdez Leal worked a lot and fruitfully throughout his life, but the main work of the artist is still the church at the Mercy Hospital, for which he created piercing, original and passionate pictures, similar to which there is no in Spanish painting.

The artist died in Seville on October 15, 1690 at the age of 68 years.