José María de Azcárate

Born 18 April 1919 in Vigo, in the province of Pontevedra, Spain.[1] His father was a sailor and early in his son's life he moved the family to Cádiz, Spain.[2] He studied at University of Seville and at University of Madrid in the subjects of Philosophy and Literature, eventually earning a doctorate from University of Madrid.[1] He was disciple of Manuel Gómez-Moreno Martinez.[3]

Azcárate authored many art history books, including a History of Art, also known as El Azcárate, used by many students studying philosophy and letters.[4] He also authored the thirteenth volume of Ars Hispaniae; historia universal del arte hispánico (1949), a book series on the art history of Spain.[5]

Azcárate was the Chair of History of Medieval Art at Complutense University of Madrid from 1973, until his death in 2001.[4] He died at the age of 82 on 18 July 2001, of a heart attack at his home in Madrid, Spain.[4] He was buried in a cemetery in Almudena.[4]

In 1974, he joined membership to the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts with the topic "El protogótico hispánico" and he was additionally a member of the royal academies of Valladolid, Seville, Toledo, A Coruña, Cadiz and Barcelona.[3]

He was awarded with the National Prize for Literature (Spain) by Alonso Berruguete in 1961.[3] The University of Alicante awarded Azcárate with an honorary doctorate degree in 1991.[6]