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Born in Seville, Velázquez adopted his mothers surname, as was common in Andalusia, signing “Diego Velázquez” or “Diego de Silva Velázquez". He studied painting and worked professionally in his native city until he was twenty-four, then moved with his family to Madrid. There, he entered the king’s service, remaining until his death in 1660. Much of his work was painted for the royal collection and
This precocious artist studied with Pedro de las Cuevas and, according to Palomino, he was only fourteen when he received his first commission: a retable for the Shod Carmelites in Toledo (lost). In 1639, he was one of a group of artists contracted to paint four canvases to decorate the Golden Hall at the Royal Alcázar in Madrid. Of that group, only one, Charles V and Philip II, has survived. In 1
After initial training with José García Hidalgo, he entered the studio of Francisco Rizi and became his most talented disciple. A close family relationship with Rizi—he married one of his teacher's goddaughters—allowed him to obtain the title of king's painter on July 16, 1685, though this was an unsalaried position. Rizi died a month later and Arredondo immediately requested the post of assistant
There is very little mention of this Spanish painter whom Palomino considered a native of Madrid and disciple of Eugenio Cajés. His painting was very dependent on his teacher's approach, with a loose and richly colored technique. The side altarpiece at the church in Cebreros (Avila) was signed by him in 1624 but it is of much lesser quality than other known works by his hand, which suggests the ex