Spanish school; early 17th century."Prayer in the Garden".Oil on canvas. Re-drawn.Measurements:

Spanish school; early 17th century.
"Prayer in the Garden".
Oil on canvas. Re-drawn.
Measurements: 118 x 49 cm.
Oil on canvas in which a devotional theme is represented. It is the representation of Jesus in the Garden of Olives at the moment when the angel comforts him, while his disciples Peter, John and James sleep beside him (Matthew: ch. 26 v. 37; Mark: ch. 14 v. 33). The Gospels narrate that Jesus, in the throes of a strange sadness, went to pray on the Mount of Olives, where the apostles followed him. Once there, Jesus withdraws to one side to pray, the moment of the crucifixion becoming present to him. This episode thus marks the beginning of the bloody Passion in the soul of Christ. The apostles fall into a deep sleep, and an angel appears to Jesus to comfort him. In fact, this episode alludes to the greatest temptation of Jesus' life, the last of all: knowing his destiny, he can either flee from his enemies or continue to fulfil his divine mission, risking his life. (Luke: 22, 39-46). It tells how Jesus knelt down and prayed, saying: "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done". Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and comforted him. And in agony, he persisted in his prayer. His sweat became like thick drops of blood falling to the ground. Rising from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them asleep with sorrow; and he said to them, "How is it that you are asleep? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation".
From its formal characteristics we can identify this work as being by a member of the workshop of Luis Tristán (Toledo?, 1580/85 - Toledo, 1624), one of the most outstanding representatives of the Toledo school of the early 17th century. A disciple of El Greco and Ribera in Italy, he returned to Toledo for good in 1613. His style, thanks to the heterogeneous nature of his training, is very varied, almost contradictory at times. The strong influence of El Greco will always remain in his work, especially in the elongation and expressive instability of his figures, but his direct knowledge of Caravaggism in Rome, precisely during its heyday, is reflected in a naturalism that is particularly evident in some of his works. Tristan seems to lean towards one or other style at specific moments, either by his own decision or at the behest of his clientele. The study of Venetian compositions is also evident in his language, although the clearest influence on his work is determined by the paintings that Juan Bautista Maíno left in Toledo, especially the "Portrait of the Four Easters" in the church of San Pedro Mártir, which combines Roman naturalism with sumptuous colour. All of this is reflected in works such as the set that Tristán painted in 1616 for the parish church of Yepes. He is currently represented in the Prado Museum, the El Greco Museum in Toledo, the Louvre in Paris, the Louvre in Cambridge, the Pollock House in Glasgow, the Fine Arts Museums in Budapest, Caracas, Bucharest and Seville, Toledo Cathedral and other churches in the region, the Santa Cruz Museum and the Archbishop's Palace in Toledo, the Royal Palace in Madrid and other collections and museums.