The Altarboy

Salaverría's work was firmly rooted in fin-de-siècle movements. He served a solid apprenticeship under Luis Menéndez Pidal who guided him towards an intimist style and left his mark on Salaverría's austere workmanship, composition and use of colour. The theme of altarboys in humorous situations (which came to be known as monaguillismo) was a common one at the end of the nineteenth century. However, the artist’s use of a very close-up foreground and the novel kinetic concept he introduces makes this work more interesting than some other more anecdotal and banal examples of the genre. The boy’s mischievous smile leads us to the action in the background.

Mikel Lertxundi Galiana

Inventory number: STM-000327-001