Around 1645, Murillo gained major recognition in Seville after receiving a large commission for a Franciscan monastery (a group of religious houses linked to the Franciscan order). This kind of multi-painting project helped establish him as a leading local painter for church patrons. It also set the pattern for his Seville career: large religious cycles made for specific spaces and audiences.
In 1646, Murillo completed The Angels’ Kitchen, originally made for a Franciscan setting in Seville. Works like this show him building a reputation for vivid storytelling and carefully staged religious scenes. They also reflect how Seville’s religious institutions were key employers for artists in this period.
In 1649, Seville was struck by a major plague outbreak that caused very high mortality and deep economic and social disruption. This crisis formed part of the background for Murillo’s later emphasis on charity-themed subjects and images of poverty, which resonated with local confraternities (religious lay brotherhoods) and hospitals. The city’s hardship became an important context for how religious art was commissioned and understood.
In 1656, Murillo painted The Vision of Saint Anthony of Padua as an altarpiece for a chapel in Seville Cathedral. The commission shows the high level of trust placed in him by major church authorities in his home city. It also highlights how Murillo’s religious storytelling became part of Seville’s most important sacred spaces.
In 1658, Murillo visited Madrid and studied major works in royal collections, including paintings by Velázquez, Rubens, and other European masters. After this trip, sources note that his style shifted toward a softer, more blended manner and a more harmonious overall look. This change influenced the mature Seville works he produced for churches and charitable institutions.
On 1660-01-01, an artists’ academy (a formal place for training and shared study) was founded in Seville, encouraged by Murillo, who became its first president. The academy helped organize art education in the city and strengthened professional networks among painters. This is a key sign of Murillo’s status in Seville beyond his paintings—he was also a leader shaping local artistic life.
In 1665, Murillo became a member of Seville’s Hermandad de la Caridad (Brotherhood of Charity), a lay religious organization connected to hospital work and caring for the poor. Membership tied him more directly to Seville’s charitable projects and patrons. It also helped set up the major painting program he would produce for the Hospital de la Caridad in the following decade.
Around 1666, Murillo produced important works for the Capuchin monastery in Seville, including Madonna and Child of the Napkin and Saint Justa and Saint Rufina. These paintings were designed for a specific church setting, shaping how viewers would experience them during worship. The commissions show how Murillo’s Seville career depended on strong ties with religious orders and their visual programs.
In 1668–1669, Murillo painted Saint Francis Embracing Christ on the Cross for the Capuchins’ Seville church. The work fits a broader program focused on Franciscan ideals like renunciation of wealth and devotion to Christ. These themes connected closely to Seville’s post-plague social reality, where religious institutions promoted charity and spiritual reform.
Around 1670, Murillo painted a self-portrait (now in the National Gallery, London) using an illusionistic stone frame and tools of the trade (palette, brushes, drawing instruments). The inscription recorded by the museum notes it was made to meet the wishes of his children. This work provides a rare, personal view of how Murillo wanted to be seen during his mature Seville years.
From about 1670 to 1674, Murillo produced a major group of large canvases for Seville’s Hospital de la Caridad, illustrating Biblical scenes linked to charitable duties (the “works of mercy,” such as feeding the hungry and caring for the sick). Some of these paintings, including The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, were made for the hospital’s church and remain associated with the site. The project tied Murillo’s art directly to Seville’s organized charity and the city’s religious response to hardship.
In 1672, Murillo completed Saint Elizabeth of Hungary Curing the Sick for the Hospital de la Caridad’s church of San Jorge in Seville. The subject emphasizes hands-on care for the ill, matching the hospital’s mission and the brotherhood’s message. It is an example of how Murillo’s mature Seville work blended religious narrative with a clear social purpose.
By 1674, the Hospital de la Caridad’s major art program (including Murillo’s works and related commissions) had been hung in the church, according to later reporting based on the institution’s documentation. The completed display created a coordinated visual message about charity, mortality, and religious duty for viewers entering the space. This marks the high point of Murillo’s public impact in late-17th-century Seville.
Murillo died in Seville on 1682-04-03. A widely repeated account states he was injured after falling from scaffolding while working on a commission in Cádiz and then returned to Seville, where he died. His death ended a long Seville-centered career that shaped the city’s Baroque religious painting and its visual language of charity.
Bartolomé Esteban Murillo in Seville (1645–1682)