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This full-length portrait by Pompeo Batoni shows a young English nobleman dressed in a scarlet coat, posing against the Roman countryside. The picture conforms to the Grand Tour portrait model of which Batoni, together with other artists such as Anton Raphael Mengs, became a leading practitioner, attaining success particularly among British patrons. Here the sitter is holding a walking stick and a
This Adoration of the Shepherds, signed and dated 1625, was executed in the final stage in Wtewael`s career. The intellectual approach to the scene (St Luke 2:15-18), which derives its emotive force from the refined rhythm of contrasting movements and lights, underlines the painter`s faithfulness to the Mannerist aesthetic he learned during his youth in Italy and France.The compositional structure
The event depicted in this painting by Antonio Carnicero illustrates the interest in scientific advances characteristic of the Enlightenment, a historical period from the second half of the 18th century dominated by practical reason. The image shows French balloon pilot Bouclé’s experiment in the gardens of the Royal Seat at Aranjuez on June 5, 1784, during the final years of Charles III’s
This is one of Bellevois`s characteristic seascapes designed to capture the atmospheric effects of the North Sea. Accordingly, in the rendering of the various elements -figures, vessels and background buildings- the artist is more concerned with blending all the features into the atmosphere than with depicting detail. The composition is structured into three planes staggered spatially towards the
The date of this painting has been the subject of critical debate for over a century. The 1889 edition of the Prado catalogue states that it was signed but fails to mention a date. The 1910 version describes it as being signed and dated in 1620. The question is not addressed in subsequent publications until that of 1985, which refers to it as being signed and dated in 1630, the year that is again
Both the royal inventories and Stchavinsky (1912) identify this scene as the story of Hecuba, wife of Priam of Troy. Wichmann (1923) disagrees, believing it to be the Finding of the bodies of Hero and Leander, an interpretation supported by Valdivieso (1973), Pigler (1974), Salerno (1977-80) and Sluijter (1986). Luna (1984), however, has called attention to the inscription HECVBA / OVIDIVS./ LIB.
This is a sketch for the vault above the high altar in the chapel of Aranjuez palace. God the Father is enthroned and embraces the Mystic Lamb, while angels spread the apocalyptic message inscribed on parchment: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing” (Apocalypse 5, 12).
The prophet Isaiah is depicted on clouds, surrounded by angels and pointing to one of them, who holds a scroll with the following Latin text concerning the birth of the Messiah: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel”. Bayeu’s canvas, which is a preparatory sketch for the ceiling of the high altar in the chapel of the royal palace in Aranjuez, reveals th
This simple, intimate portrait based on a range of grey tones is one of the few known examples of portraiture in the artist´s work. Ribelles may have known the celebrated poet Quintana in his youth through the theatrical and literary circles that both frequented in Madrid. Quintana (1772-1857) was an admirer of Goya and included a poem in his praise in his anthology of 1805.
This work belongs to the so-called peasant interiors, one of the new genres of painting that emerged and developed in the Netherlandsin the early seventeenth century. In Houbraken and in early inventories they are described as een boertje, (a little peasant) or as toeback rookerchen (tobacco smokers). The consolidation and appreciation of this genre was fostered by the satirical and moralising lit
The opulence of Boel’s still lifes, their rich textures and colours and the occasional use of a satirical tone make him one of the most original still-life painters of the period. The boy’s enigmatic smile may have some now unknown meaning. The coat-of-arms on the armchair has also not been identified.
This panel depicts an episode from the life of Alexander the Great, at the end of his Indian campaign. The Indian philosopher Calanus, before his funeral pyre and sensing his imminent death, invites Alexander to meet him in Babylon in three months´ time, thus prophesying the Emperor´s death. This was a preparatory sketch for a major canvas, now destroyed, commissioned by King Louis XVI.
An in-depth study of Joaquín Inza is yet to be conducted that would allow us to gauge his role and importance in the panorama of Spanish art in the second half of the eighteenth century. Inza is known for his portraits of the royal family and of aristocrats and intellectuals from the period, and is now regarded as an estimable and discrete painter with a precise, austere style, although som
The sitter is the First Count Colomera (1723-1819), a distinguished soldier who served in the Spanish army during various successive reigns. The canvas uses numerous devices typical of Baroque descriptive portraiture although dating from a period when that style was in decline. The sitter is dressed as a minister with the sash of the rank of Captain General and the grand cross of the Order of Char
Francesco Pepe (c. 1684-1759), an influential Jesuit preacher in Naples, promoted the dogma of the Immaculate Conception and acted as intermediary between Pope Benedict XIV and the Bourbon monarch Charles VII, King of Naples and Sicily. Mengs painted the priest in Rome in 1758 on their only meeting. Cut down at an early date, the canvas may originally have shown Pepe seated, as suggested by the sl
A nearly symmetrical composition in which the Virgin Mary sits on a throne between two kneeling female figures. A canopy over her head is flanked by two heavy green curtains with gold binding, pulled back on both sides. Facing the viewer with downturned gaze, the virgin wears a pink tunic and navy blue robes and holds the infant Jesus in her arms. The child holds a floral wreath to crown the marty
Catalogado a su ingreso en el Museo en 1847 como “retrato de la Sa infanta Da Carlota Reyna de Portugal” de Joaquín Inza (1736-1811), forma parte de un grupo de retratos de infantes y del príncipe Fernando que Arturo Ansón Navarro (2012) identificó la modelo como la infanta María Amalia (1779-1798) de doce años y atribuyó el retrato a Ramón Bayeu por motivos estilísticos y por su relación document
A group of individuals appear in front of the stall of a seller who displays his vessels, furniture, used clothing and paintings. Others people visit the other stalls around the Plaza de la Cebada, where all sorts of objects, including paintings, were sold. The background offers a view of the imposing Church of San Francisco el Grande. Goya presents certain types and customs of Madrid´s society, s
