A Saint Jacques gilt bronze sculpture, Spanish school, 16th century

A gilt bronze plaque representing the profile bust of a Saint Jacques with a well-groomed beard and long curly hair, dressed in a simple doublet adorned with the scallop symbol of the pilgrimage with Compostelle.

The composition is typically mannerist, directly inspired by Roman pieces: a strictly profiled portrait of crisp and clean forms, idealized features without losing naturalism and special attention to detail, both facial features and facial qualities. hair, worked strand by strand.
With Renaissance sculpture we find the purest expression of the Spanish soul. In the hierarchy of our artistic excellence, the sculpture of the sixteenth century represents an equivalence of perfection with the painting of the following century. All the passion, the mysticism, the desire for beauty, the exaltation of the spirit, the flame which burns the material, we find them in these statues and reliefs which cover the altarpieces. Likewise, it can be said that yes, there is a distinctly Hispanic renaissance that uses Italian forms to express an essentially anti-classical temperament and ideals, derived directly from properly Spanish religiosity. There is no radical break with the art of late Gothic; naturalistic rhythms and excesses, angular folds and violent chiaroscuro are softened, and more harmonic and balanced rhythms and more delicate lines are introduced. However, the expressive intensity is the same, seeking above all to immerse oneself in the soul, to disrupt the correction of the classic type in favor of a spiritual outpouring that goes beyond pure aesthetics. So, although they will exist, examples of idealized and beautiful characters, clearly Italian classics, will be rare, and individualized faces will proliferate and always reflect internal character and religiosity.