Luis de Morales: A Close Look at a Spanish Renaissance Painting

The rare, recently rediscovered work Christ Carrying the Cross by Luis de Morales—one of the defining painters of 16th-century Spain—represents a key expansion of the Getty’s collection of 16th-century Spanish paintings. This in-depth talk provides illuminating context, including discussion of the painting’s place within Morales’ body of work; its subject and iconography, including the key antecedent of the Italian painter Sebastiano del Piombo; and the comparison of several, closely related versions of the same subject by Morales. In addition, hear new insights into the artist’s process that were discovered during the painting's conservation treatment at Getty. Davide Gasparotto Senior Curator of Paintings and Chair, Curatorial Affairs After completing his studies at the University and the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa, Davide began his career as curator at the National Gallery of Parma, Italy. Before joining the Getty Museum's Department of Paintings in 2014, he served as the director of the Galleria Estense in Modena from 2012 to 2014. He specializes in painting, sculpture, and decorative arts of the Renaissance; the rediscovery of classical antiquity; and the history of collecting, with particular emphasis on the Italian Renaissance. Kari Rayner Associate Conservator Kari Rayner joined the Getty Museum's Department of Paintings Conservation in 2020. She specializes in the study, preventive care, and treatment of easel paintings from the 15th through 19th centuries. She received her graduate degrees in art history and conservation from the Conservation Center, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. Kari held various internships prior to and during her graduate training, including at the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in Cologne, Germany and Modern Art Conservation in New York, NY. She completed her graduate internship at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. She has since held post-graduate positions at the Hamilton Kerr Institute, University of Cambridge; the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. She has additionally held shorter-term positions as a visiting scholar at the Yale Center for British Art and as a project assistant conservator for the Getty’s Conserving Canvas project at the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. This program was presented at the Getty Center and Online on Saturday, Dec 6, 2025, https://www.getty.edu/calendar/luis-d.... Subscribe to the Getty Museum YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/gettymus... #GettyMuseum #Paintings #LuisdeMorales #KariRayner #DavideGasparotto #Renaissance #SpanishPainting