Francisco Salzillo (1707-1783)

Born in Murcia in 1707, Francisco Salzillo Alcaraz was the son of Murcian Isabel Alcaraz and Italian religious image maker, Nicolás Salzillo, who taught him the principles of image-making and sculpture.

Educated in a religious environment, as a youth he felt the calling of the church. He decided to become a priest and entered the Santo Domingo monastery where he remained until 1727, when, due to the death of his father, he had to leave in order to take charge of the family studio.

His brothers and certain craftsmen, such as José and Roque López, helped him not only to continue the work of his father but to start out on a career as a sculptor working in wood and stone.

A year after the death of his mother, in 1746, he married Juana Vallejo, with whom he shared many hours in the studio as she sometimes modelled for him. The years with Juana saw the high point of the artistic splendour and maturity of his career as a sculptor. During this period, he produced the majority of his work, including seven of the eight "pasos" (scenes depicting the stages in the Passion of Christ) commissioned by the "Nuestro Padre Jesús" brotherhood.

Following the death of his wife in 1765, Francisco Salzillo descended into a deep crisis that is reflected in his work. His work in the studio was focused mainly on formalising an ever-increasing number of contracts and supervising the work carried out by his craftsmen. "Los Azotes" and many nativity figures belong to this period.

FIND OUT MORE: • Francisco Salzillo. Una biografía en 34 páginas (151 KB)  • Cronología 1698-2007 (85 KB)