El Vignola del Colegio de Arquitectos de Valencia y sus retablos de traza sevillana: Juan Martínez Montañés

Abstract

Three drawings of altarpieces executed by the Sevillian sculptor Juan Martinez Montañés, preserved in the copy of Vignola's architectural treatise in the Colegio de Arquitectos de Valencia are analyzed here. The first drawing is a preliminary study for the altarpiece of the Immaculate Conception in the Parrochial Church of El Pedroso (Seville). The second drawing, also a preliminary idea, is for the lost altarpiece of the Dominican monastery of Portacelli in Seville, from which only the figure of St Dominic of Guzman flagellating himself has survived (Museo de Bellas Artes de Sevilla). The third is the model for the type of altarpiece-tabernacle used by Montañés in the Convent of Santa Clara (Seville). The author also points out the origin of certain elements of Montañés's designs in the prints of Vignola's treatise.