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When describing the work of this prolific painter of still lifes, it is frequently said that Luis Meléndez included only commonplace objects in his canvases; this painting, in fact, offers the exception that proves the rule. Amid the various objects represented here are a porcelain cup and large saucer, or plate, which seem to be East Asian rather than Spanish. Indeed, they may be Cantonese
Sketch for one of the eight segments of the dome of the collegiate church at La Granja, Segovia. These Old and New Testament scenes (destroyed in 1918) glorified the Holy Trinity. God reprimands Adam and Eve for disobeying him, while an angel announces to Abraham that his barren wife will bear a child.In this sketchs the noble simplicity of the poses and emotions evidences the influence of Anton R
Sobre una tosca mesa de madera, descrita táctilmente con los pequeños detalles de la calidad del material, visibles en nudos y muescas, aparecen desordenadamente situadas unas cuantas “peritas de San Juan” y un pan en segundo término, junto al cual se eleva una alcarraza de loza muy blanca que bien pudiera ser andaluza. Se denomina popularmente “jarra de cuatro picos” y muestra una decoración de i
This highly original still life presents various oysters in the fore and middle grounds—a relatively infrequent element in Meléndez’s paintings. The foreground is completed by some cloves of garlic and a decorated ceramic plate, probably from Talavera. Behind them, the powerful volume of an enormous copper pot vies for the leading role in this composition. It is tilted, as one edge rests on
Meléndez’s works are characterized by his interest in familiar, everyday realities, which he places in the immediate foreground as if seeking direct contact with the viewer. And yet, in the context of this desire to create a repertoire of common foodstuffs and utensils, we occasionally find a more distinguished and decorative object, less popular than its everyday kitchen surroundings. Here
El autor ha procurado conjugar los componentes más característicos de una sencilla ensalada, aprovechando al tiempo el asunto para mostrar junto a los pepinos y tomates -contrastados merced a su diversidad de tonalidades-,un lebrillo de Alcorcón tapado con un plato que sin duda pertenece al grupo que figura en torre a su lado, todos de Puente del Arzobispo; se añaden una vinagrera, una alcuza y un
The young gentleman is depicted seated on a stone with his dog beside him and a landscape with a river behind. Romney offers a pleasing image of childhood, captured with a simple, humane touch characteristic of this painter. The portrait has a Neo-classical air with a refined elegance much appreciated by the British aristocracy. The identity of the sitter is uncertain but he may be a member of the
Paired with (P07726, P07727 y P07728). These are sketches for cartoons for tapestries intended to adorn the King’s Antechamber known as the “Pieza de Conversación” in the Royal Palace of Madrid. Based on the allegories painted by Corrado Giaquinto for the equivalent room in the Palace at Aranjuez, they are notable for the apocalyptic symbols, such as the dove of the Holy Sprit conveying God
Sketches for the pendentives of the dome of the collegiate church at La Granja (Segovia). With this decoration Bayeu continued the project begun by Giambattista Tiepolo, who died in 1770, imbuing the compositions with the harmony, solidity and clarity he learnt while training under Mengs. Three of the evangelists are shown writing, inspired by angels, while Saint Luke, patron of painters, holds an
Hunting subjects are rare in Meléndez's work. Here, two multicolored partridges are the composition's main theme. Alongside them, in the foreground, are two cloves of garlic, some paper packages and the onions. In the middle ground, two Alcorcón-style earthenware bowls hold three crockery plates with poppy decorations, probably from Talavera or Puente del Arzobispo. The painter's customary method
Luis Meléndez distinguished himself as the greatest bodegón, or still-life, painter in late eighteenth-century Spain. By this time, the popularity of the genre had declined in Spain and was not practiced by any of Meléndez’ contemporaries at court. Even so, Meléndez painted over one hundred bodegones in his lifetime, leading art historians to infer that he took a person
Some limes, laid out with the artist's habitual disorder, occupy almost half the canvas. Behind them, a honey pot of the popular green-glazed type from Biar or Lucena shows the painter's eye for detail. In the background, a box of jelly lies open on a castañuela plate. Behind it, a silver or pewter saucer holds a Tonalá type Mexican ceramic cup. The butterfly hovering over it all is interesting fo
Felipe (1720-1765), the son of Philip V and Isabella Farnese, married Louise Elisabeth of France, daughter of Louis XV, in 1739. With the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) he received the family duchies of Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla. This portrait seems to be a preparatory study for Van Loo`s The Family of Philip V, also in the Prado.
The first thing to catch the viewer’s eye is a splendid earthenware pitcher with a typical 18th-century tin-oxide white glaze and a Solomonic braided handle. The bright reflections of light on its curved surface contrast with the play of straight and curved lines that define the cheese resting beside it, and with the wavy-edged rococo plate in the immediate foreground, which overflows with cherrie
Se ve un plato, del tipo “castañuela”, de borde historiado -siguiendo un diseño popular- que posiblemente posea un origen talaverano; ejerce el papel de recipiente desbordado por las ciruelas, algunas en ramo, que lo colman. A un lado, sobre una servilleta doblada, una rosca de pan refleja con acierto el impacto de la luz; al otro, tres higos rellenan el vacío de la izquierda, procurando equilibra
