ROLDÁN, Pedro

Spanish sculptor, renowned as one of the finest sculptors in Seville in the second half of the 17th century. In his prolific output, mainly of polychrome wood figures and reliefs for retables, he was aided by his flourishing family workshop. While the influence of Andalusian sculptors such as Alonso de Mena (1587-1646), José de Arce (d. 1666), Juan Martínez Montañés and Alonso Cano is evident in some of the poses and facial expressions of Roldán's figures, they also embody a new BaroqueGLOSSARYThe period in art history from about 1600 to about 1750. In this sense the term covers a wide range of styles and artists. In painting and sculpture there were three main forms of Baroque: (1) sumptuous display, a style associated with the Catholic Counter Reformation and the absolutist courts of Europe (Bernini, Rubens); (2) dramatic realism (Caravaggio); and (3) everyday realism, a development seen in particular in Holland (Rembrandt, Vermeer). In architecture, there was an emphasis on expressiveness and grandeur, achieved through scale, the dramatic use of light and shadow, and increasingly elaborate decoration. In a more limited sense the term Baroque often refers to the first of these categories. The development of the Baroque reflects the period's religious tensions (Catholic versus Protestant); a new and more expansive world view based on science and exploration; and the growth of absolutist monarchies. feeling for movement and a dramatic pathos.

Pedro Roldán was the father of four sculptors or painters who helped in his workshop; two other children married artists who also worked for him, and his daughter Luisa Roldán (1650-1704) was an independent sculptor.