Gregorio Vasquez de Arce y Ceballos

Gregorio Vásquez de Arce y Ceballos (May 9, 1638 – August 6, 1711), commonly referred to as Gregorio Vásquez, was a Neogranadian painter, one of the leading artists of the Latin American Baroque movement, which extended from the mid 17th to the late 18th century in the Viceroyalty of New Granada. Most of the artwork of Vásquez depicts the life of Christ, Virgin Mary, the Saints and scenes of the New Testament.

Gregorio Vásquez
Self-portrait, 1685
Born	Gregorio Vasquez de Arce y Ceballos (1638-05-09)May 9, 1638 Santa Fe de Bogotá, New Kingdom of Granada
Died	August 6, 1711(1711-08-06) (aged 73) Santa Fe de Bogotá
Nationality	Nueva Granada
Known for	Painting
Notable work	(The Final Judgement) (1673), The Immaculate Conception (1697)
Movement	Baroque

Vásquez was born in Bogotá, in a criollo family of Andalusian origin. The Vásquez family emigrated from Seville, Spain in the 16th century. He received art classes in the St Bartolome College and as apprentice of the painter Baltasar de Vargas Figueroa.

In 1701, Vásquez went to prison due to his involvement with the kidnapping of Doña María Teresa de Orgaz from the Santa Clara Convent. When he left prison, he got into deep poverty and went insane, never to paint again. Finally, he died in 1711 in Bogotá. In 1863 the Colombian government placed a commemorative plaque in the house where Vasquez was born and died (Calle 11 No. 3-99).