RIBALTA, Spanish family of painters
Between 1571 and 1573 the Ribalta family left Solsona for Barcelona. In 1581, after the death of his parents, Francisco Ribalta moved to Madrid to seek an apprenticeship. He was enormously receptive to the work of other artists; he studied the paintings in the royal collection, came in contact with the Spanish and Italian artists who were carrying out the decoration of El Escorial and developed his early style, which was strongly influenced by Italian Mannerism. In Madrid, Ribalta married Inés Pelayo, by whom he had two daughters and, in 1597, a son, Juan who trained in his father's workshop and followed his style closely.
