On-line gallery
- Reference number
- P01198
- Author
- Velázquez, Diego Rodríguez de Silva y (Spanish)
- Title
- The Buffoon, Pablo de Valladolid
- Chronology
- Ca. 1635
- Technique
- Óleo
- Support
- Lienzo
- Measures
- 209 cm x 123 cm
- School
- Española
- Theme
- Retrato
- On display
- Yes
- Procedence
- Colección Real (Palacio del Buen Retiro, Madrid, 1701-1703, s.n.; Palacio Real Nuevo, Madrid, antecámara de la serenísima infanta, 1772, nº 609; Real Academia de BBAA de San Fernando, Madrid, 1816).
Pablo de Valladolid (1587-1648) became King Felipe IV's (1605-1665) court buffoon in 1632. Dressed in black, he is depicted in a declamatory pose that alludes to his job at the Palace.
This is one of the maximum examples of Velázquez's skill at reflecting a model's character and transmitting the sensation of volume and perspective with a very reduced palette. The space and depth are suggested only by the character's shadow.
This painting was listed in Madrid's Buen Retiro Palace in 1701 and 116, and at the Royal Palace of Madrid in 1772 and 1794. It was deposited at the Royal Academy of the Fine Arts of San Fernando in 1816 and entered the Prado Museum collection in 1827.
