1598-1664. Spanish painter, based in Seville.
He painted religious subjects in a powerful,
austere style, often focusing on a single
figure in prayer. Zurbaran used deep
contrasts of light and shade to create an
intense spirituality in his works and
received many commissions from religious
orders in Spain and South America. During the
1640s the softer, sweeter style of Murillo
displaced Zurbaran's art in public favour in
Seville, and in 1658 he moved to Madrid.