JJ Merelo
@jjmerelo.bsky.social
Student of a BA in Art History by day, professor by another day.
Venetophile
Posts in English, Italian and Spanish.
Venetophile
Posts in English, Italian and Spanish.
It’s called “graffito over fresco”, and it’s essentially two layers of fresco, the second one with colored lime, which is used for color and also for the texture and design effects such as the waves or the texture in the friar’s robe, made of rough cloth. This gives the murals a tactile quality.
November 19, 2025 at 9:34 PM
It’s called “graffito over fresco”, and it’s essentially two layers of fresco, the second one with colored lime, which is used for color and also for the texture and design effects such as the waves or the texture in the friar’s robe, made of rough cloth. This gives the murals a tactile quality.
Baby Jesus, meanwhile, with a trapezoidal halo, is kicking off Death. The transition from the bed scene to this one is achieved through the red wrappers, as well as the wavy air that disappears under the bed. But those “waves” reveal the remarkable technique the author has been using.
November 19, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Baby Jesus, meanwhile, with a trapezoidal halo, is kicking off Death. The transition from the bed scene to this one is achieved through the red wrappers, as well as the wavy air that disappears under the bed. But those “waves” reveal the remarkable technique the author has been using.
A capuchin monk is giving him a bit of succor, apparently at home, the man barely breaking a smile while he holds on to a four-prong walking stick. The shelves at the right look like an old pharmacy, with ceramic pots holding who knows what. Is it trying to convey the monks have convent pharmacies?
November 19, 2025 at 9:34 PM
A capuchin monk is giving him a bit of succor, apparently at home, the man barely breaking a smile while he holds on to a four-prong walking stick. The shelves at the right look like an old pharmacy, with ceramic pots holding who knows what. Is it trying to convey the monks have convent pharmacies?
This and other murals by the same author, P. Ugolino da Belluno, decorate the poligonal walls of the crypt of Fray Leopoldo. They are related to the works of mercy, which are the theme of the whole crypt, in this case, one of the “corporal” works, to visit the sick, poor old chap, in bed
November 19, 2025 at 9:34 PM
This and other murals by the same author, P. Ugolino da Belluno, decorate the poligonal walls of the crypt of Fray Leopoldo. They are related to the works of mercy, which are the theme of the whole crypt, in this case, one of the “corporal” works, to visit the sick, poor old chap, in bed
Built following the hygienist tendencies of the 1920s, high windows, every room open to the exterior, it has an H shape. The windows are so high they break into the roof; that and the little decorative “acrótera” are a signature of the architect, apparently.
It’s now a retirement home, so no visit.
It’s now a retirement home, so no visit.
November 18, 2025 at 9:38 PM
Built following the hygienist tendencies of the 1920s, high windows, every room open to the exterior, it has an H shape. The windows are so high they break into the roof; that and the little decorative “acrótera” are a signature of the architect, apparently.
It’s now a retirement home, so no visit.
It’s now a retirement home, so no visit.
I had to stick my hand over a wall to take this picture. It’s the “La caridad” hospital, a building from 1921 by the architect Fernando Wilhelmi who’s so unknown he literally had an exhibition devoted to him, together with other unknown local architects; there are just a few passing references
November 18, 2025 at 9:38 PM
I had to stick my hand over a wall to take this picture. It’s the “La caridad” hospital, a building from 1921 by the architect Fernando Wilhelmi who’s so unknown he literally had an exhibition devoted to him, together with other unknown local architects; there are just a few passing references
The only hints at sanctity are the books, a bit further apart, that use the rosary as a bookmark. All made in bronze, life size, really standing out with respect to the other saints in that part of the church, that include Padre Pío. All in all, not quite a masterwork, but a remarkable work of art.
November 17, 2025 at 9:04 PM
The only hints at sanctity are the books, a bit further apart, that use the rosary as a bookmark. All made in bronze, life size, really standing out with respect to the other saints in that part of the church, that include Padre Pío. All in all, not quite a masterwork, but a remarkable work of art.
Although, to be honest, the posture is a bit awkward, the way it’s not standing but sitting cross-legged on the plinth, as if setting up the slides for the choir, makes it closer to the public, just the guy next door who knows computers. But subtle hints point to his Franciscan links: tau as logo
November 17, 2025 at 9:04 PM
Although, to be honest, the posture is a bit awkward, the way it’s not standing but sitting cross-legged on the plinth, as if setting up the slides for the choir, makes it closer to the public, just the guy next door who knows computers. But subtle hints point to his Franciscan links: tau as logo
How do you represent a saint that became so a few years ago? Well, art history is about understanding the problems the artists are trying to solve (and much more, but let’s start with that). That’s one of the main problems the creator of this work representing San Carlo Acutis who died in 2006
November 17, 2025 at 9:04 PM
How do you represent a saint that became so a few years ago? Well, art history is about understanding the problems the artists are trying to solve (and much more, but let’s start with that). That’s one of the main problems the creator of this work representing San Carlo Acutis who died in 2006
This is why movements such as suprematism upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/co... open new avenues and create new languages for expression to everyone, from the highbrow artist to the decorators trying to create a certain kind of atmosphere in a provincial restaurant.
November 16, 2025 at 9:02 PM
This is why movements such as suprematism upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/co... open new avenues and create new languages for expression to everyone, from the highbrow artist to the decorators trying to create a certain kind of atmosphere in a provincial restaurant.
This is an acrylic on old paper work, but check out how it blends with the wall color and the wooden beams, it’s as if the whole set was a painting framed in wood. The primary shapes used in the paintings really help that way: they don’t draw attention to themselves, rather they create a texture.
November 16, 2025 at 9:02 PM
This is an acrylic on old paper work, but check out how it blends with the wall color and the wooden beams, it’s as if the whole set was a painting framed in wood. The primary shapes used in the paintings really help that way: they don’t draw attention to themselves, rather they create a texture.
Interior decoration is, to a great extent, art, and with 1 bar/restaurant/pub every 200 people in Granada, there’s a niche for many professionals that can eventually breed some talent. That is the case of the Faragüit, an estate just off the city, that was apparently designed integrally that way
November 16, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Interior decoration is, to a great extent, art, and with 1 bar/restaurant/pub every 200 people in Granada, there’s a niche for many professionals that can eventually breed some talent. That is the case of the Faragüit, an estate just off the city, that was apparently designed integrally that way
No wonder I mistook this painting for Saint Bernard, since the original painting was inspired by another Spanish Baroque painting by Ribalta, this one content3.cdnprado.net/imagenes/Doc...
See? White robe. This last one is in the Prado
See? White robe. This last one is in the Prado
November 15, 2025 at 9:08 PM
No wonder I mistook this painting for Saint Bernard, since the original painting was inspired by another Spanish Baroque painting by Ribalta, this one content3.cdnprado.net/imagenes/Doc...
See? White robe. This last one is in the Prado
See? White robe. This last one is in the Prado
As a matter of fact, this is a sculpture taken from this painting by Murillo upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/co...
Up to and including the foot on the world. The painting was requested from Murillo by the Capuchin order, the same hosted in this monastery. He’s rejecting the world, as if kicking it
Up to and including the foot on the world. The painting was requested from Murillo by the Capuchin order, the same hosted in this monastery. He’s rejecting the world, as if kicking it
November 15, 2025 at 9:08 PM
As a matter of fact, this is a sculpture taken from this painting by Murillo upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/co...
Up to and including the foot on the world. The painting was requested from Murillo by the Capuchin order, the same hosted in this monastery. He’s rejecting the world, as if kicking it
Up to and including the foot on the world. The painting was requested from Murillo by the Capuchin order, the same hosted in this monastery. He’s rejecting the world, as if kicking it
He’s not Saint Bernard but Saint Francis, Saint Bernard would have the white robe of a Cister monk, while this is obviously the brown tunic of a Franciscan (the mother lode of capuchin friars), so it would be Saint Francis. It represent the miracle of Jesus hugging the saint, which happened to both.
November 15, 2025 at 9:00 PM
He’s not Saint Bernard but Saint Francis, Saint Bernard would have the white robe of a Cister monk, while this is obviously the brown tunic of a Franciscan (the mother lode of capuchin friars), so it would be Saint Francis. It represent the miracle of Jesus hugging the saint, which happened to both.
Already considered a saint when he died, he’s not one notch below, “beato”, “blessed”; this was built a decade after his death. My mother told me children used to flock around him for the candies he gave out, and that was when everyone went hungry in Spain. Brown color matches the capuchin habit
November 14, 2025 at 11:25 PM
Already considered a saint when he died, he’s not one notch below, “beato”, “blessed”; this was built a decade after his death. My mother told me children used to flock around him for the candies he gave out, and that was when everyone went hungry in Spain. Brown color matches the capuchin habit
A quick one to show you this very unusual tetramorphos, reduced to logos, bull, eagle, person, lion, the four evangelists, placed symmetrically by the sides of a simple couple of crosses. This is the ramp to enter the sanctuary of Fray Leopoldo, a capuchin friar who lived in the 1960s.
November 14, 2025 at 11:25 PM
A quick one to show you this very unusual tetramorphos, reduced to logos, bull, eagle, person, lion, the four evangelists, placed symmetrically by the sides of a simple couple of crosses. This is the ramp to enter the sanctuary of Fray Leopoldo, a capuchin friar who lived in the 1960s.
But today I have used this mural, which is made of ceramic tiles, to understand the concepts of Abstraktion (Worringer) and Einfühlung (Vischer). According to the later, an impulse to flee from anguish and sorrow is shown in art by anti-naturalistic, rhythmic, abstract forms, like these monks.
November 13, 2025 at 8:54 PM
But today I have used this mural, which is made of ceramic tiles, to understand the concepts of Abstraktion (Worringer) and Einfühlung (Vischer). According to the later, an impulse to flee from anguish and sorrow is shown in art by anti-naturalistic, rhythmic, abstract forms, like these monks.
The abstract stained glass window on top works as a crown or as the source of light. I need to go back one evening when lighted from outside. The Virgin is the center of the community of Capuchin monks that’s hosted there. It gives the composition a symmetry, but also a rhythm that suggest balance
November 13, 2025 at 8:54 PM
The abstract stained glass window on top works as a crown or as the source of light. I need to go back one evening when lighted from outside. The Virgin is the center of the community of Capuchin monks that’s hosted there. It gives the composition a symmetry, but also a rhythm that suggest balance
This mosaic is at the façade of the church I showed before, which means that it’s also from the late 1960s, and I have been unable to find who’s the author. It represent the “Divina Pastora”, or “divine shepherdess”, a different advocation of the Virgin, that matches the name of the street it’s in.
November 13, 2025 at 8:54 PM
This mosaic is at the façade of the church I showed before, which means that it’s also from the late 1960s, and I have been unable to find who’s the author. It represent the “Divina Pastora”, or “divine shepherdess”, a different advocation of the Virgin, that matches the name of the street it’s in.
The one on the left should be Saint Bernard of Claraval, who was the creator of Cister, so not clear what it’s doing here; the image on the right is quite clearly the Immaculate Conception. There’s a statue on a high pillar a few meters away. Granada was big on the concept from the 17th century.
November 12, 2025 at 9:10 PM
The one on the left should be Saint Bernard of Claraval, who was the creator of Cister, so not clear what it’s doing here; the image on the right is quite clearly the Immaculate Conception. There’s a statue on a high pillar a few meters away. Granada was big on the concept from the 17th century.
Built in the 60s as part of a Capuchin friar congregation, it’s got an interesting slanted roof that mimics a mudéjar rig. The stained glass and altar lighting give it an amazing luminosity that focuses devotion. The sculptures there are pretty classic, I would say Baroque, but they look divine.
November 12, 2025 at 9:10 PM
Built in the 60s as part of a Capuchin friar congregation, it’s got an interesting slanted roof that mimics a mudéjar rig. The stained glass and altar lighting give it an amazing luminosity that focuses devotion. The sculptures there are pretty classic, I would say Baroque, but they look divine.
This beautiful church in capuchin brown is the Fray Leopoldo sanctuary, of the Divina Pastora oratory, or the Immaculate Conception, depending on who you ask, but if you ask anyone in Granada, it’s simply “Fray Leopoldo”, a pilgrimage site that’s amazingly popular. He’s our local San Pío
November 12, 2025 at 9:10 PM
This beautiful church in capuchin brown is the Fray Leopoldo sanctuary, of the Divina Pastora oratory, or the Immaculate Conception, depending on who you ask, but if you ask anyone in Granada, it’s simply “Fray Leopoldo”, a pilgrimage site that’s amazingly popular. He’s our local San Pío
This kind of stone is probably from Sierra Elvira, a mountain range North of Granada that whose quarries produce this kind of stone, with this color. Not an usual choice for the Madonna, though. The mildew growth might mean it’s been part of a fountain… and it’s looking South now, so somewhere else.
November 11, 2025 at 9:07 PM
This kind of stone is probably from Sierra Elvira, a mountain range North of Granada that whose quarries produce this kind of stone, with this color. Not an usual choice for the Madonna, though. The mildew growth might mean it’s been part of a fountain… and it’s looking South now, so somewhere else.
It’s a yellow-brown stone statue with the Madonna with Jesus in her left arm, and a rich tunic. She sits on a pillar, which in turn sits on a stone plinth. The Virgen del Pillar literally is that, a Madonna on a pillar, so I guess that’s what she is. But also a theotokos, or mother of God.
November 11, 2025 at 9:07 PM
It’s a yellow-brown stone statue with the Madonna with Jesus in her left arm, and a rich tunic. She sits on a pillar, which in turn sits on a stone plinth. The Virgen del Pillar literally is that, a Madonna on a pillar, so I guess that’s what she is. But also a theotokos, or mother of God.