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Altarpiece of Mare de Déu de la Misericordia by Bartolomé Bermejo by Martín Bernat

Altarpiece of Mare de Déu de la Misericordia by Bartolomé Bermejo

Martín Bernat·1479

Historical Context

Martín Bernat, a Zaragoza painter, collaborated with the Spanish-Flemish master Bartolomé Bermejo on the Altarpiece of the Virgin of Mercy, produced for a church in Daroca around the 1470s–80s. Bermejo's revolutionary oil technique, imported from Flanders, transformed Aragonese painting, and Bernat's participation in the altarpiece allowed him sustained exposure to Bermejo's methods. The Virgin of Mercy iconography — the Madonna spreading her cloak to shelter the faithful — was a popular votive image in the Crown of Aragon, connecting the altarpiece to widespread lay devotional practice in the region.

Technical Analysis

The altarpiece combines Bermejo's characteristic deep oil glazes with Bernat's more conventionally Aragonese handling, creating detectable differences in surface quality between their respective contributions. The gold brocade backgrounds and tooled haloes show the Flemish-influenced technical ambition that made Bermejo remarkable in the Iberian context.

See It In Person

Grand Rapids Art Museum

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Quick Facts

Medium
Oil on panel
Dimensions
280 × 245 cm
Era
Early Renaissance
Style
Early Renaissance
Genre
Animal
Location
Grand Rapids Art Museum,
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