Ribera

Painter and printmaker José Ribera (1591-1652, also known as Jusepe de Ribera) was among the earliest and best-loved exponents of Caravaggio's "Tenebrism," in which stark drama is drawn from extreme contrasts of light and shadow. Despite the tendency to identify him with the Spanish school, Ribera was quick to leave his native land, moving to Italy around 1611, and living in Rome and Naples; however, he often signed his paintings "Jusepe de Ribera, Spaniard." In these early years, Ribera practiced the Caravaggian style, creating many Tenebrist masterpieces (such as his 1630 portrait of Archimedes) before embracing more diffuse effects of lighting. With Poligrafa's beautifully printed introduction to Ribera, Javier Portús, Chief Curator of Spanish Baroque Painting at the Prado, opens up a new approach to Ribera's career, focusing on the early Tenebrist years in Rome and Naples.