Jorge Afonso (''c.'' 1470 – 1540) was an important Portuguese Renaissance painter. Jorge Afonso was nominated royal painter in 1508 by King Manuel I and again in 1529 by John III. He was mainly based in

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

, with a workshop near the Igreja de São Domingos. A whole generation of Portuguese painters was educated in his workshop, including Cristóvão de Figueiredo,

Garcia Fernandes Garcia Fernandes (died ''c.'' 1565) was a Portuguese Renaissance painter. Like many of painters of the time, Garcia Fernandes was a pupil in the Lisbon workshop of Jorge Afonso, who was the court painter of King Manuel I. In the 1530s he worked ...

Gregório Lopes Gregório Lopes (''c.'' 1490 – 1550) was one of the most important Renaissance painters from Portugal. Gregório Lopes was educated in the workshop of Jorge Afonso, the court painter of King Manuel I. Later he himself became court painter f ...

and Jorge Leal, among others.Disney, p. 169. The main painted

altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...

s attributed to Jorge Afonso were commissioned by the old Queen Leonor, widow of King John II and sister of Manuel I. For the former Queen, Jorge Afonso painted the main altarpiece of the Convent of Madre de Deus, in Lisbon, in 1515. This magnificent altarpiece is now in the

National Museum of Ancient Art The Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga (; MNAA), also known in English as the National Museum of Ancient Art, is a Portuguese national art museum located in Lisbon. With over 40,000 items spanning a vast collection of painting, sculpture, goldware, fur ...

, in Lisbon. Between 1520 and 1530, Jorge Afonso painted the 14 panels of the main altarpiece of the Monastery of Jesus, in Setúbal, again sponsored by Queen Leonor. The panels can be seen in the museum of the Monastery. Jorge Afonso's workshop is also linked to the painted decoration of the walls of the Round Church of the

Convent of Christ The Convent of Christ ( pt, Convento de Cristo/Mosteiro de Cristo) is a former Catholic convent in Tomar, Portugal. Originally a 12th-century Templar stronghold, when the order was dissolved in the 14th century the Portuguese branch was turned in ...

, in Tomar, executed in the 1530s.

Notes

Bibliography

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Portuguese Renaissance painting (by Maria José Palla , João Augusto Laurentino).

External links

Paintings by Jorge Afonso in ''Six Centuries of Portuguese Painting'' website.
1470s births 1540 deaths 15th-century Portuguese people Portuguese Renaissance painters 16th-century Portuguese people 15th-century Portuguese painters Portuguese male painters {{Portugal-painter-stub