St. Matthew 1610 - 1614

El Greco painted this “St. Matthew” using oil on canvas, a now-classic fine art technique, which was itself still relatively new when El Greco took it up. Oil paint is fascinating stuff; pigment is ground and mixed with linseed, walnut, or poppy seed oil. These dry very slowly, allowing for the nuanced blending and layering that you can see here, especially in the saint's robes. The pigment dictates the color, and the oil gives the paint its fluid, workable consistency. El Greco’s brushwork is evident throughout, giving the painting a palpable, material quality. Consider the artist laboring over the painting, mixing pigments, and applying layer upon layer to build up form and depth, or experimenting with different ratios of pigment to oil to achieve his desired effect. This kind of skill and knowledge only comes through years of dedicated practice. In the end, it is his mastery of the process that truly brings “St. Matthew” to life.