When the «worldly» modifies the poetic; another view of the female figure in the painting of Alonso Cano

Abstract

Among the characteristic features of the works of Alonso Cano is the way in which he gives life to his figures, which are paradigmatic in their poetic representation of beauty. The female figures are the finest representations of this “world-view” which imbues his paintings, from those of his first period in Seville to the last works in Granada and Málaga. The main contribution of this article is the discovery of another type of female figure present in some of his works: this figure is quite without lyrical tones and has been created from the vivid experience of nature, controlled, but authentic at the same time, near to everyday experience, a more earthy and mundane female.