Painter, 1541 to 1614
El Greco
El Greco was a Greek who learned to paint in Venice and found his subject in Spain. Outside Toledo and Madrid there is no better place to see him than New York.
- Born
- 1541, Candia, now Heraklion, Crete
- Died
- 1614, Toledo, Spain
- Movement
- Mannerism
- In New York
- 4 works in 2 museums
Where to see El Greco in New York
Each work with the museum it hangs in. Museums move and lend their works, so check before a special journey.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art3 works
View of Toledo
about 1599 to 1600
The city on its hill under a sky of black and electric blue, about to break. He moved the cathedral and the castle to suit himself: it is a portrait of Toledo, not a map.
Portrait of a Cardinal
about 1600
Probably Fernando Niño de Guevara, the Grand Inquisitor, in crimson silk and round black spectacles, one hand relaxed and the other gripping the arm of his chair.
The Vision of Saint John
1608 to 1614
The saint throws up his arms before a group of naked souls receiving robes, in a picture left unfinished and later cut down. It hung in a Paris studio that Picasso visited in 1907.
Frick Collection1 work
Purification of the Temple
about 1600
Christ drives the traders from the temple with a whip, a subject El Greco painted again and again throughout his life.
The life of El Greco
Doménikos Theotokópoulos was born in Crete in 1541 and trained there as a painter of icons. He went to Venice, where he studied Titian and Tintoretto, then to Rome, and in 1577 to Toledo, where he lived for the rest of his life. The Spanish called him the Greek, and he signed his pictures in Greek letters to the end.
His stretched figures and acid colours fell out of favour after his death and were taken up again three hundred years later by the modern painters. American collectors bought him at just that moment. Louisine Havemeyer, who left View of Toledo and the Portrait of a Cardinal to the Met in 1929, was among the first.
What to know
- Born in Crete, trained in Venice, worked in Toledo for nearly forty years
- View of Toledo is one of only two landscapes by him that survive
- Picasso studied The Vision of Saint John while painting Les Demoiselles d'Avignon
- Born
- 1541, Candia, now Heraklion, Crete
- Died
- 7 April 1614, Toledo, Spain
El Greco: common questions
- Where can you see El Greco in New York?
- At the Metropolitan Museum of Art: View of Toledo, Portrait of a Cardinal and The Vision of Saint John. At the Frick Collection: Purification of the Temple. Museums move and lend their works, so check before a special journey.
- What is El Greco's most famous work in New York?
- View of Toledo, of about 1599 to 1600, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The city on its hill under a sky of black and electric blue, about to break. He moved the cathedral and the castle to suit himself: it is a portrait of Toledo, not a map.
- When and where was El Greco born?
- In 1541, at Candia, now Heraklion, Crete. El Greco died on 7 April 1614, at Toledo, Spain, aged about 73.
- What is El Greco known for?
- Born in Crete, trained in Venice, worked in Toledo for nearly forty years. View of Toledo is one of only two landscapes by him that survive. Picasso studied The Vision of Saint John while painting Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. El Greco was a Greek painter, of Mannerism.
Tickets and tours: El Greco in New York
Things to do near the Met
The nearest of this site's best things to do in the city. Distances are in a straight line.
- 13Walk down the spiral of the Guggenheim550 m awayMuseum, 1.5 to 2 hours, ticket
- 4Walk through Central Park900 m awayGarden, 2 to 4 hours, free
- 11Meet the dinosaurs at the Museum of Natural History950 m awayMuseum, 2.5 to 4 hours, ticket
- 18See the Frick's Vermeers in the house they were bought for1.0 km awayMuseum, 1.5 to 2 hours, ticket
Where to eat near the Met
The nearest of the famous tables this site lists in New York. Distances are in a straight line.
- Café Sabarsky4.3Viennese café, Inside the Neue Galerie300 m away
- Barney Greengrass4.4Appetizing shop and restaurant, Upper West Side1.4 km away
- Tavern on the Green4.4Restaurant in the park, Inside Central Park1.4 km away
- P.J. Clarke's4.5Saloon, Midtown East2.3 km away
Hotels near the Met
The five-star hotels closest to it, of those this site lists in New York. Distances are in a straight line.
- The Mark4.5Five-star hotel, Madison Avenue at 77th Street450 m away
- The Surrey4.4Five-star hotel, Madison Avenue at 76th Street550 m away
- The Pierre4.5Five-star hotel, Fifth Avenue at 61st Street1.7 km away
- The Sherry-Netherland4.6Five-star hotel, Fifth Avenue at 59th Street1.8 km away
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Pieter Bruegel the Elder
Only about forty paintings by Bruegel survive, and one of the greatest is at the Met: The Harvesters, a whole summer's day in one wide landscape.
Northern Renaissance. 1 work in 1 museum
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Painter, 1571 to 1610
Caravaggio
The Met has two Caravaggios from either end of his short career: The Musicians, painted in Rome when he was about twenty-six, and The Denial of Saint Peter, from his last months.
Baroque. 2 works in 1 museum
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Painter, 1599 to 1660
Diego Velázquez
The Met has Velázquez's portrait of Juan de Pareja, the enslaved assistant he freed. The Frick has his Philip IV, painted on campaign in three sittings.
Baroque. 2 works in 2 museums
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