Alonso Gallego (Medina del Campo, Valladolid, c. 1475 - Nájera, La Rioja, c. 1548)

Alonso Gallego (Medina del Campo, Valladolid, c. 1475 - Nájera, La Rioja, c. 1548)
“Saint Dominic”
Tempera and gold on panel. 128 x 81,5 cm.
Gallego trained initially in Castile, probably in the town of Medina itself, and he established himself in Nájera around 1495. His style is clearly influenced by Juan de Borgoña.
Gallego, among other artists, was linked to Vigarny, also to León Picardo, and between 1529 and 1534 he was commissioned alongside Andrés de Melgar to do the painting and polychroming of the altarpieces in the retrochoir of Santo Domingo de la Calzada Cathedral. They were assigned the commission by León Picardo, which is the key to understanding their work.
As Moya Valgañón notes in his biographical sheet in the Real Academia de la Historia (Royal Historical Academy): “His style can be established as a type of Germanic mannerism, with a canon of slim characters with strong shoulders, squashed faces with marked beards and bulging foreheads with a serene expression, in contrast to their agitated movements. It allows us to find typical characteristics but in environments where references to Roman architecture are not lacking. His very definite forms mean that numerous artworks can be attributed to him without risk of error, due to his unmistakeable style. In his day he was named Master of Támara by Diego Angulo.”
We would like to thank Irune Fiz for her help in cataloguing this painting.