kids encyclopedia robot

El Soplón facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
El Soplón
El Greco – Boy Blowing an Ember – Google Art Project – edited.jpg
Artist El Greco
Year 1571-1572
Medium oil on canvas
Dimensions 60.5 cm × 50.5 cm (23.8 in × 19.9 in)
Location Museo di Capodimonte, Naples

El Soplón or Boy Blowing on an Ember is a famous painting created by the artist El Greco between 1571 and 1572. He painted it with oil paints on a canvas while he was living in Rome. This artwork was inspired by an old Roman writer named Pliny the Elder and his book Naturalis historia.

El Soplón and another painting called Portrait of Giulio Clovio were some of the first artworks where El Greco focused on painting people. Later, he even used the same boy's figure in another painting called The Fable around 1580.

The Painting's History

We don't know for sure who first asked El Greco to paint El Soplón. It might have been a special request from the powerful Farnese family. For a long time, people thought that another artist, Jacopo Bassano, had influenced this painting. However, newer studies suggest that El Greco was actually trying to recreate a lost painting from ancient Rome.

Where It Has Been

This painting was once part of the important Farnese Collection, a large group of artworks owned by the Farnese family. In 1734, the painting was passed down to Charles of Bourbon and then moved to Naples, Italy. Today, you can see El Soplón at the Museo di Capodimonte in Naples.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Muchacho encendiendo una candela para niños

  • List of works by El Greco
kids search engine
El Soplón Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.