El Greco
Lamentation
From $80
This painting is a pale face, a white ruff and warm browns, and a dull copy flattens the face and muddies the background. Our El Greco Portrait of an Old Man print was graded beside the original so the eyes keep their depth and the ruff stays crisp.
Canvas, framed or paper
Stretched canvas. Printed on cotton canvas and stretched taut over a frame. The edges are mirror-wrapped, so the picture continues around the sides and none of it is lost to the fold.
Framed canvas. The same canvas, set in a black, white, natural wood or dark wood frame 0.83 in deep. The frame gives the work a finished edge and a little more presence on the wall.
Framed print. Printed on fine art matte paper and framed in solid pine, behind shatterproof plexiglass, in black, white, natural wood or dark wood. It arrives ready to hang. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame.
Fine art print. Printed on 310gsm fine art matte paper, for framing your own way. It travels rolled and protected. From 18x24 inch.
Sizes
16x16 inch, 24x24 inch, 30x30 inch. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame, so the visible painting is a little smaller.
On your wall
Its near-square shape suits a study, a library or a hallway. The warm browns look rich with cream, charcoal and walnut, and a black or dark wood frame suits it.
About the painting
Portrait of an Old Man (Self-Portrait?) by El Greco
Toledo, about 1597
Around 1595 to 1600, El Greco painted an old man with a receding hairline and deep-set eyes, in a ruff in the fashion of the 1590s, against a plain brown ground.
Is it him?
For more than a century scholars have argued whether this is a self-portrait. The same face seems to appear in other El Greco paintings, growing older with him. In 1926 it was linked to an inventory made by his son: a portrait of my father, with a black frame.
Mannerism
The empty background recalls his training as an icon painter on Crete; the loose brushwork, the Venice of Titian and Tintoretto. It hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Read the story
This might be the face of El Greco himself. Nobody can prove it.
Around 1597, in Toledo, he painted an old man, balding, bearded, with deep-set eyes and a white ruff, against a plain brown background.
For more than a hundred years, scholars have argued about who he is.
In 1900, someone first called it a self-portrait. Others noticed the same face in other El Greco paintings, growing older along with the painter.
Then, in 1926, a scholar linked it to a list of possessions made by El Greco's son. One item reads: a portrait of my father, with a black frame.
That plain background recalls his training on Crete as a painter of icons.
The loose brushwork on the coat comes from Venice.
It hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York.
Look into his eyes, and decide for yourself.
Portrait of an Old Man. El Greco, about 1597.
How each piece is brought to life
Faithful to the original, and made to be felt on your wall.
Graded against the original
We compare every work with the original as we grade it, keeping the artist’s colours true while bringing back their depth and glow. Every mark stays the artist’s own.
Printed for you
Printed to order on cotton canvas or fine art paper, then framed if you chose a frame, in 1 to 3 business days.
On your wall
It arrives 5 to 12 business days later, tracked and free anywhere in the US. Framed pieces come ready to hang.
Questions
Is this the original painting?
No. The original hangs in a museum. What you receive is a fine art reproduction, remastered from the original and printed for you, with every mark where the artist left it.
Will the colour look flat?
This is where most reproductions disappoint, and it is where we spend the most time. Each work is graded side by side with the original: faithful to the artist’s colours, with the depth and warmth brought back, so it moves you on the wall the way it was meant to. Canvas reads a touch softer than a backlit screen, and every screen shows colour a little differently.
Will the edges be cropped?
Each size is a standard frame size, so we fit the painting by trimming a little from its edges. We never stretch or squash it, and we check every size by eye so no face, figure or signature is cut. On canvas the edges are mirror-wrapped, which keeps the whole picture on the front.
Which size is right for my wall?
Aim for about two-thirds the width of the furniture beneath it. Over a sofa or a sideboard, one of the two largest sizes will hold the wall. The size guide lists every size in inches and centimetres, with the kind of wall each one suits.
How long does it take?
Your piece is printed in 1–3 business days, then spends 5–12 business days in transit, tracked all the way. Delivery is free anywhere in the US. We are unable to deliver to PO boxes.
What if it arrives damaged?
Send us a photograph and we will remake it and send it again. There is nothing to return.
Can I return it?
Yes, within 30 days of delivery. Our returns policy has the details.
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Printed to order
Graded against the original, then printed for you on cotton canvas or fine art paper in 1–3 business days.
The whole painting
Every mark is the artist’s own, and canvas edges are mirror-wrapped so the whole picture stays on the front.
Free US shipping
On every order, tracked, 5–12 business days in transit.
30-day returns
Returns and exchanges within 30 days of delivery.
