Martín de Soria (
fl.
''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...
1449 -1487) was a Spanish
Gothic painter in the
Flemish
Flemish may refer to:
* Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium
* Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium
*Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium
* Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...
style; active in the
Kingdom of Aragón
The Kingdom of Aragon (; ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Monarchy, kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain. It became a part of the larger ...
. His style is related to that of
Jaume Huguet
Jaume Huguet (; 1412–1492) was a Catalan painter.
Originally from Valls, he moved to Tarragona to stay with his uncle Pere Huguet, who was also a painter. When they moved to Barcelona he was exposed to modern trends of the time. Between 1440 ...
and his works have sometimes been confused with that painter's youthful efforts.
Life and work
He appears to have begun his artistic education in the workshop of his uncle,
Blasco de Grañén
Blasco de Grañén (c. 1400, Zaragoza – October 1459, Zaragoza) (known as: "Master of Lanaja") was a Gothic art#Painting, Gothic painter active in Aragon from 1422. He became the appointed painter to Juan II of Aragon. His notable assistant, ...
, who also worked as his agent. In 1457, he and Juan Rius (fl.1455-1482) were commissioned to create an
altarpiece
An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter 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 or sculpture, ...
for the town of
Aguilón, with his uncle as guarantor.
In 1459, following his uncle's death, he completed altarpieces at
Épila
Épila is a municipality in the province of Zaragoza (province), Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain. Its population in 2005 was approximately 4,100.
The Santuario de la Virgen de Rodanas is located in the Sierra de Nava Alta, west of Épila town. The road ...
and
Ejea de los Caballeros
Ejea de los Caballeros (; ), commonly known simply as Ejea, is a town and Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the province of Zaragoza (province), Zaragoza, part of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It is one of the five main towns i ...
that his uncle had left unfinished. At the latter, in the Iglesia de San Salvador, which was not completed until 1476, a cleaning that was performed in 1986 uncovered evidence that the work may be entirely Soria's.
Also in 1459, he contracted with the merchant, Miguel de Baltueña, to create an altarpiece for his personal chapel at the Iglesia de San Pablo in
Zaragoza
Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...
. Some of the panels, damaged by old, inexpert restorations are at the
Zaragoza Museum. Between 1469 and 1471 he produced a "Virgen del Campo" in
Asín which was once attributed to Huguet.
It is not until 1485 that another work can be named as his with certainty. This is the main altarpiece of the church in ,
Huesca
Huesca (; ) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Aragon between 1096 and 1118. It is also the capital of the Spanish Huesca (province), ...
, which was signed and dated. Most of the panels were destroyed in 1936, during the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
. The surviving ones may be seen at the local . The others are known only through photographs.
References
Further reading
*
*
*
* Lacarra Ducay, Mª del Carmen y Marcos, Ángel, ''Joyas de un patrimonio. Retablo de San Salvador. Ejea de los Caballeros'', Zaragoza, Diputación de Zaragoza; Centro de Estudios de las Cinco Villas, 1991. Catálogo de la exposición.
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soria, Martin de
15th-century Spanish painters
Gothic artists
Religious artists
Altarpieces
Artists from Aragon