Few painters have achieved success so early and remained so successful throughout their lives as Velazquez. Even in his teens he was acclaimed as a master painter. By the age of 24 he had become Court Painter to King Philip IV. For nearly 40 years he produced an incomparable series of the king and of other figures at court. H e created an art as moving and as varied as any in Europe and less comfined to its age than many other, seemingly freer, painters.
Sir Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) was from an Antwerp family. In 1591 he became a pupil Verhaecht, a landscape and decorative painter. In 1600 Rubens went to Italy and became a Court painter to Duke of Mantua. He travelled widely in Italy and visited many of the great cities. He spent time studied the works of Titan and Michelangelo. On return to Antwerp he was appointed as the Court Painter to the Spanish Governor of Netherlands, a post he held for the rest of his life. In Antwerp he built himself an Italianate palace and married Isabella Brandt in 1609. Afterward he became perhaps the most energetic and fruitful career in the history of art that made him the most important artist in Northern Europe and the greatest Baroque painter of Northern Europe.
The most learned, inventive and productive artist in the history of the northern Baroque, Rubens’s talent was extraordinary. The range of his work was colossal, encompassing portraiture, allegory, religious painting, landscapes and designs for ornament, tapestry, books and prints. A diplomat and scholar, his intelligent use of iconography was never rivalled, perfectly matching allusions to a patron’s aspirations, while his emotive religious works were actively intended as part of the Catholic armoury against the onslaught of the Protestant Reformation.
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One of the main reason why I was not keen on Rubens’ paintings is that he over dramatised, leading to theatrical and a sense of unreal, perhaps a bit too commercial. But of course technically he is very good and very successful, perhaps even better than Titan.
Sir Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) was from an Antwerp family. In 1591 he became a pupil Verhaecht, a landscape and decorative painter. In 1600 Rubens went to Italy and became a Court painter to Duke of Mantua. He travelled widely in Italy and visited many of the great cities. He spent time studied the works of Titan and Michelangelo. On return to Antwerp he was appointed as the Court Painter to the Spanish Governor of Netherlands, a post he held for the rest of his life. In Antwerp he built himself an Italianate palace and married Isabella Brandt in 1609. Afterward he became perhaps the most energetic and fruitful career in the history of art that made him the most important artist in Northern Europe and the greatest Baroque painter of Northern Europe.
The most learned, inventive and productive artist in the history of the northern Baroque, Rubens’s talent was extraordinary. The range of his work was colossal, encompassing portraiture, allegory, religious painting, landscapes and designs for ornament, tapestry, books and prints. A diplomat and scholar, his intelligent use of iconography was never rivalled, perfectly matching allusions to a patron’s aspirations, while his emotive religious works were actively intended as part of the Catholic armoury against the onslaught of the Protestant Reformation.
---------------------
One of the main reason why I was not keen on Rubens’ paintings is that he over dramatised, leading to theatrical and a sense of unreal, perhaps a bit too commercial. But of course technically he is very good and very successful, perhaps even better than Titan.
Sir Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) was from an Antwerp family. In 1591 he became a pupil Verhaecht, a landscape and decorative painter. In 1600 Rubens went to Italy and became a Court painter to Duke of Mantua. He travelled widely in Italy and visited many of the great cities. He spent time studied the works of Titan and Michelangelo. On return to Antwerp he was appointed as the Court Painter to the Spanish Governor of Netherlands, a post he held for the rest of his life. In Antwerp he built himself an Italianate palace and married Isabella Brandt in 1609. Afterward he became perhaps the most energetic and fruitful career in the history of art that made him the most important artist in Northern Europe and the greatest Baroque painter of Northern Europe.
The most learned, inventive and productive artist in the history of the northern Baroque, Rubens’s talent was extraordinary. The range of his work was colossal, encompassing portraiture, allegory, religious painting, landscapes and designs for ornament, tapestry, books and prints. A diplomat and scholar, his intelligent use of iconography was never rivalled, perfectly matching allusions to a patron’s aspirations, while his emotive religious works were actively intended as part of the Catholic armoury against the onslaught of the Protestant Reformation
Jacques Louis David (1749—1825) was a very important painter during the late 18C and the early 19C painting. He was the master of Neo-classicism and later Romanticism. At time he was some what artistic Czar of the time. Neoclassicism was a ‘modernising’ artistic movement of the time after the decline of the aristocratic art of Rococo. In 1782 he became an Academician and in 1784 he returned to Rome to paint the Oath of the Horatii (1785), an important painting in the history of painting. It was more like the underground art of its days. During the French Revolution, he became a Deputy and involved with the politics of the day. Many well-known painters of the early 19C were his pupils, including Gerard & Ingres. As a painter, his portraits were supreme. Due to the changing politics of France, he imposed self-exile and cut off from the main stream of Romanticism in France.
The Louvre is an important museum in the world. It has a huge collection, including historical artifacts from the civilization of the Middle East to European heritage. In addition is a gallery of sculptures and most famously it paintings, including Leonardo’s Mona Lisa. But not possible for anyone to go through its entire collection in one day. So you need to plan you visit to get the best out of its collection. Unless you have some special interest, it is best to see its painting collection, otherwise you never feel you have been to the Louvre. 31 Aug 2021.
Few painters have achieved success so early and remained so successful throughout their lives as Velazquez. Even in his teens he was acclaimed as a master painter. By the age of 24 he had become Court Painter to King Philip IV. For nearly 40 years he produced an incomparable series of the king and of other figures at court. H e created an art as moving and as varied as any in Europe and less comfined to its age than many other, seemingly freer, painters.
Velázquez, painter of princes and jesters.ppsxguimera
At the age of 24 he was appointed painter to King Philip IV.
Four years later he was promoted to chamber painter, the most important position among court painters.
Sir Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) was from an Antwerp family. In 1591 he became a pupil Verhaecht, a landscape and decorative painter. In 1600 Rubens went to Italy and became a Court painter to Duke of Mantua. He travelled widely in Italy and visited many of the great cities. He spent time studied the works of Titan and Michelangelo. On return to Antwerp he was appointed as the Court Painter to the Spanish Governor of Netherlands, a post he held for the rest of his life. In Antwerp he built himself an Italianate palace and married Isabella Brandt in 1609. Afterward he became perhaps the most energetic and fruitful career in the history of art that made him the most important artist in Northern Europe and the greatest Baroque painter of Northern Europe.
The most learned, inventive and productive artist in the history of the northern Baroque, Rubens’s talent was extraordinary. The range of his work was colossal, encompassing portraiture, allegory, religious painting, landscapes and designs for ornament, tapestry, books and prints. A diplomat and scholar, his intelligent use of iconography was never rivalled, perfectly matching allusions to a patron’s aspirations, while his emotive religious works were actively intended as part of the Catholic armoury against the onslaught of the Protestant Reformation
Jacques Louis David (1749—1825) was a very important painter during the late 18C and the early 19C painting. He was the master of Neo-classicism and later Romanticism. At time he was some what artistic Czar of the time. Neoclassicism was a ‘modernising’ artistic movement of the time after the decline of the aristocratic art of Rococo. In 1782 he became an Academician and in 1784 he returned to Rome to paint the Oath of the Horatii (1785), an important painting in the history of painting. It was more like the underground art of its days. During the French Revolution, he became a Deputy and involved with the politics of the day. Many well-known painters of the early 19C were his pupils, including Gerard & Ingres. As a painter, his portraits were supreme. Due to the changing politics of France, he imposed self-exile and cut off from the main stream of Romanticism in France.
The Louvre is an important museum in the world. It has a huge collection, including historical artifacts from the civilization of the Middle East to European heritage. In addition is a gallery of sculptures and most famously it paintings, including Leonardo’s Mona Lisa. But not possible for anyone to go through its entire collection in one day. So you need to plan you visit to get the best out of its collection. Unless you have some special interest, it is best to see its painting collection, otherwise you never feel you have been to the Louvre. 31 Aug 2021.
Few painters have achieved success so early and remained so successful throughout their lives as Velazquez. Even in his teens he was acclaimed as a master painter. By the age of 24 he had become Court Painter to King Philip IV. For nearly 40 years he produced an incomparable series of the king and of other figures at court. H e created an art as moving and as varied as any in Europe and less comfined to its age than many other, seemingly freer, painters.
Velázquez, painter of princes and jesters.ppsxguimera
At the age of 24 he was appointed painter to King Philip IV.
Four years later he was promoted to chamber painter, the most important position among court painters.
Teaching four art movements: Baroque, chiaroscuro, realism, idealism as the relate to Diego de Velazquez, the court painter to Philip IV of Spain, one of the main characters in the autobiographical novel, I, Juan de Pareja, by Elizabeth Borton de Trevino
A Brief Look at the Siglo de Oro or Golden Age of Spanish Culture for students in the Ist year of Masters in Spanish in Doon University. PPT is for further reference. Detailed explanations have been given in class and BBC documentary on Art of Spain has also been shown.
Paolo Veronese (c1528-88) was born in Verona and trained under several minor artists. The Chief influence on him was Titian. He worked in Venice probably from 1553, when he began his ceiling for the Doge’s Palace, with daring Sotto in Su (from below to above) perspective and Mannerist nudes in complicated poses filling up the picture space. He went to Rome for the first time in 1560, probably after he painted the frescoes in Villa Maser. He specialised mainly in huge pictures of Biblical, allegorical or historical subjects. With vast crowd and of accessory figures. Golden hair women, children, horses, dogs, apes, courtiers, musicians and soldier in armours.
The Prado is unique among the world’s great museums. Its collection is astonishingly rich, with master paintings from the 13C to the 18C. It is one of the more complete wider representation of European schools of paintings. Assembled by the Spanish kings for their palaces, its treasures are now housed in the grandiose Neo-Classical palace designed in 1787. The Prado contains the most important collection of Spanish masters to be found anywhere in the world. It has the finest works included paintings by El Greco, Zurbaran, Velazquez, Murillo, Goya etc. The great strength of the museum is that it has also amassed extensive collections of other European artists. As the Low Countries were once part of the Spanish Empire, its collection included works by Rogier van der Weyden, the unsurpassed works of Hieronymus Bosch, Pieter Bruegel, etc. Rubens’ works are well-represented
Claude Monet (1840-1926) was the leading member of the Impressionist group and the one who longest practised the principles of absolute fidelity to the visual sensation and painting directly from the object, in necessary out of door. Cezanne is said to have described him as ’only one eye, but my God what an eye!’. Monet is also the one who took impressionism into new contradictory way to become, in the 1940s, a major influence on Abstract Expressionism.
Galicia is a green rain-swept region remarkable for its coastal cliffs and bays (rias). Traditionally, it was seen as a poor agricultural region whose economy did not lend itself to modernization. It was never conquered by the Moors. Bordering Portugal to the south and enclosed by the waters of the Atlantic, Galicia could offer its inhabitants little on the way of new land for cultivation. Overpopulation and unemployment forced many to emigrate. Galicia has always maintained strong links with the sea, with A Coruna, a port for commerce and industry. However fishing is vital to the economy and Galician seafood is the best in Spain.
Clara Peeters (1594-c1659) was active between 1607 and 1621. Unlike many of the women painters of her time, she specialized on Still-life. She was a pioneer female painter. Early female painters were mostly portrait painters. There is not much known about her life as well. Her paintings of tables of food and other objects ware early manifestations of naturalism. As far as we know, her paintings of fish are the first that were dedicated to this subject.
Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614) lived in Bologna, Italy. She was a contemporary of Sofonisba Anguissola, who was internationally known. Her father was a distinguished printed of the School of Bologna. Her earliest work was printed in 1575, ‘The Child of the Monkey’, At 23. She specialised in painted portraits and mainly on women of nobleman and of high society. She was particularly skilled in painting dresses. Her relationships with female clients were often warm and some became godparents of her children.
Fontana married artist Gian Zappi in 1577. She gave birth to 11 children. After the marriage Fontana continued to paint to support her family. Zappi cared for the household and served as assistant agent in selling his wife’s painting. He also depicted small elements of her pictures such as draperies and another details.
Lavinia was elected an honorary member of the University of Bologna and was honoured as a doctorate in 1580.
In 1603, she and her family moved Rome on the invitation of Pope Clement VIII and appointed as a portraitist in the Vatican. Her career flourished in Rome. She was elected to the San Luca Academy in Rome. She died in 1614 and left behind over 100 of her work.
Anguissola was the first Western female painter that had gained an international fame. At an young age, she was introduced to Michelangelo, who immediately recognized her talent. In the late 1550s, she established herself, as a professional painter, in her native Italy. She was recruited to the Spanish court about 27 year ago. Her marriage was arranged by the Spanish King Philip II, to a Sicilian nobleman. Two years later her husband died and she remarried again to a sea captain Orazio Lomellino. In later year, she became quite famous and many young artists came to visit her and to discuss the arts with her. Amongst them was the young Anthony van Dyck, who painted one of Anguissola last portrait. More importantly she was a pioneer who had shown other women to pursue serious careers as professional painters.
The world’s oceans and seas cover 71% of the surface of the Earth. It makes the Earth unique within the Solar System. It is also where life first began. Today the ocean is regarded as the last major frontier on Earth for exploration and development of resources to sustain mankind in the future. The sea also has an irresistible attraction on us, drawing us nearer to the shores. The sound of the waves lashing on the sandy beaches, the gentle breeze of a hot summer evening, the shimmers of silver lights, the fisherman coming home with their catch, the long voyages of container carriers that link the world economy are all part of our acquaintance with the sea. In its fury, it can unleash power that can destroy cities, sending ships and army to the bottom of the sea. No wonder, apart from our scientists, the seas is often a favourite subject for artists, poets and musicians. The song La Mer was an example, composed and sang by Charles Trenet’s in 1946 offers us a romantics version of our encounter with the sea.
“Caravaggio (1571-1610) is one of the most revolutionary figures in art. His intense naturalism almost brutal realism and dramatic lighting had a wide impact on European artists, including Orazio Gentileschi, Valentin de Boulogne and Gerrit van Honthorst. Each absorbed something different from Caravaggio, propagating his style across Europe. But by the mid-17C, Caravaggism was at odds with a prevailing preference for classicism and the reputation of these artists waned, not be revived until the mid-20C.” Beyond Caravaggio Introduction.
The British Isles are situated at the edge of the European continent. Historically the Roman invaded Britain in 43 AD and ruled for 350 years. This was followed by successive settlements by northern European. The last successful invasion was by the Norman from France in 1066. Today Britain is administratively divided into four main regions – Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England. Culturally, British influence has been very important in the world. Many former colonies have inherited the political culture and the social practices from Britain, in particularly the English speaking countries of the world. Economically, Britain was the first country to begin the process of Industrial Revolution. Britain is rich in energy resource but poor in material resources. As an island country, maritime trading has been and important development in its economy. Geological its landscape is varied with many types of habitats.
In 1794. during the French Revolution, the commissioners appointed in our country seized art works of every kind from churches, monasteries, abbeys guildhalls and the houses of so-called emigres, i.e. the French bourgeois residing in Belgium. Whilst many of these conquetes artistiques were taken away to the Louvre in Paris and in Versailles, some 1500 items, mainly paintings, considered to be less valuable, were left in Brussel. Even if there were no masterpieces among them, they were to form the basis of what is now the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium.
Van Dyck was among the greatest and the most successful portraitists who has ever lived. He dazzled 17C contemporaries not only in his native Netherlands but also in Italy and above all in England. His influence on subsequent portrait painting in Britain proved so great that it lasted to the beginning of 20C.
P Bruegel’s greatness is so widely acknowledged today that it is hard to imagine that in his life his supremacy was not recognised. He was immensely popular, but many contemporaries regarded his work as old-fasioned.
The greatest Flemish artist of 16th century. This realistic and landscape painter, gives us a gleam of life in the Low Country 400 years ago. His paintings are full of details & messages and so interesting to look at. Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c1525/30-69), nicknamed ‘Peasant Bruegel’, was the most important satirist in the Netherlands after Bosch and one of the greatest landscape painters. After he became Master in the Antwerp Guild in 1551, he went to France and Italy, travelling as far south as Sicily. He was impressed by the landscape of Italy but not so on the Italian paintings. From his painting, he gave us insights to the peasant life and their relationship with nature of 16C in the Low Countries. He was an educated man, well able to associate with his distinguished clients and sophisticated enough disguised his political opinions as a biblical story.
The greatest Flemish artist of 16th century. This realistic and landscape painter, gives us a gleam of life in the Low Country 400 years ago. His paintings are full of details & messages and so interesting to look at. Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c1525/30-69), nicknamed ‘Peasant Bruegel’, was the most important satirist in the Netherlands after Bosch and one of the greatest landscape painters. After he became Master in the Antwerp Guild in 1551, he went to France and Italy, travelling as far south as Sicily. He was impressed by the landscape of Italy but not so on the Italian paintings. From his painting, he gave us insights to the peasant life and their relationship with nature of 16C in the Low Countries. He was an educated man, well able to associate with his distinguished clients and sophisticated enough disguised his political opinions as a biblical story.
British Museum has a “permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documents the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present. The British Museum was the first public national museum in the world.
The Museum was established in 1753, largely based on the collections of the Anglo-Irish physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane. It first opened to the public in 1759, in Montagu House, on the site of the current building. The museum's expansion over the following 250 years was largely a result of British colonisation” Wikipedia.
London is one of the financial centre of the world. It is also an important centre for performance, arts, museums, theatres and fashion. What is particularly noticeable is that London is made up of two city centres. The City of London for finance, the West End for entertainment and the political entre of Westminster.
Yellowstone is US first National Park. It is also the world’s oldest. The park was created in 1872. Today National Parks are established for purpose of conservation. These are designated areas of natural beauty, an island in a developing world.
Today, Yellowstone National Park is probably the best known in the world and easily accessible. Wildlife abounds from the smallest to the largest mammals found in North America. The wolf, here, is a recovery story that is a major restoration of the balance of nature. There large herd of bison roaming in park, following their migration routes. Black and brown bears are frequently seen here. The park lies in the heart of the the Rocky Mountain Range. Here, powerful volcanic forces erupted 2 million, 1.3 million and as recently as 640,000 years ago, to create three of the world’s largest volcanic depressions, or calderas.
Native Americans have lived in the region for at least 11,000 years. Today with large number of visitors, the management and control of the park is vital to ensure its long term future.
The Rijksmuseum is a major European treasury of art. It houses the world’s greatest collection of Dutch paintings of 17C, the Golden Age. It is also a museum for Dutch history, art objects, drawings, sculptures and furniture. The building was opened in 1885. Its building was one of the first to be constructed specially as a museum. In 2004 the museum largely closed for 10 years to undertake a major renovation. The major features of the renovation were the of construction two large atriums covered by glass roofs to provide more amenity spaces for the visitors. The garden was also modified, statues were added, for the visitors to relax and enjoy the summer sun.
Human civilization has existed for a very short time on Earth. If we take the existence of Earth as equivalent to one year in time. Then human civilisation only appears on the last second of the last hour of the last day in the Earth’s year. Human has been fighting each other since the beginning of history. In the last century, we had two World Wars, when millions were killed. But I am the luck generation that miraculously never experienced wars, although the drums of wars are never too far away. We have arsenals of weapons that could destroy the world many times over. In my life time, I have also seen many of our children, marrying people of different races too. Our greatest enemy is ourselves. If we can survive this, there is the whole universe to explore. Finally, just remind ourselves that the longest Ice Age on Earth lasted for well over 1 billion years long and our civilisation is only 10,000 years old. 16 Jan 2022.
For Sweden 13th December is an important day. It is the beginning of Christmas. It is the festival of Santa Lucia or the Festival of Light. On that day the eldest daughter of the family traditionally dresses in a white robe and wears a crown of candles, bringing lights to the dark winter. It is also a festive reason with specially dishes, foods and drinks for the occasion. Santa Lucia Festival is celebrated in Italy, Norway and Swedish Finland.
It is very scenic and the chosen location for The Roman Holiday, La Dolce Vita and There coins in the Fountain. It has many famous sites, rich in architecture and paintings – Pantheon, RoRome is known as the Eternal City because of its long history. man Forum, Colosseum, castel sant’ Angelo, Vatican, Basilica of St Peter, Trevi Fountain, If Gensu, the Spanish steps, Piazza Navona. Rome is shaped by two important artists Michelangelo and Bernini. This slideshow sketch the development of architecture from the Ancient, to the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque to the modern age.
In the history of Paris, the city has seen a lot of terror and a lot of bloodshed. The city was once occupied by the Roman in 52 BC and it was occupied again as recently as the Second World War, 70 years ago. Paris is always a vibrant city. It was the city of the Enlightened Philosophers and it was the city of the Impressionists. Today it is one of the most favourite tourist destination in the world. It is a city of light and romance and we will return to reclaim the city, its cafes, its theatres, its museums, its concert halls, its monuments, its streets and its squares. Viva la Paris.
2137ad - Characters that live in Merindol and are at the center of main storiesluforfor
Kurgan is a russian expatriate that is secretly in love with Sonia Contado. Henry is a british soldier that took refuge in Merindol Colony in 2137ad. He is the lover of Sonia Contado.
2137ad Merindol Colony Interiors where refugee try to build a seemengly norm...luforfor
This are the interiors of the Merindol Colony in 2137ad after the Climate Change Collapse and the Apocalipse Wars. Merindol is a small Colony in the Italian Alps where there are around 4000 humans. The Colony values mainly around meritocracy and selection by effort.
Explore the multifaceted world of Muntadher Saleh, an Iraqi polymath renowned for his expertise in visual art, writing, design, and pharmacy. This SlideShare delves into his innovative contributions across various disciplines, showcasing his unique ability to blend traditional themes with modern aesthetics. Learn about his impactful artworks, thought-provoking literary pieces, and his vision as a Neo-Pop artist dedicated to raising awareness about Iraq's cultural heritage. Discover why Muntadher Saleh is celebrated as "The Last Polymath" and how his multidisciplinary talents continue to inspire and influence.
Hadj Ounis's most notable work is his sculpture titled "Metamorphosis." This piece showcases Ounis's mastery of form and texture, as he seamlessly combines metal and wood to create a dynamic and visually striking composition. The juxtaposition of the two materials creates a sense of tension and harmony, inviting viewers to contemplate the relationship between nature and industry.
1. Diego Velazquez
First created 1 April 2009. Version 5.0, 27 Aug 2021, London. Daperro
The painter of painters.
“…while all the rest was art, this alone was truth.” Velazquez. 1650, Rome.
2. The Age of Reformation began in 1517 with Martin
Luther challenging the Catholic for the widespread
corruptions , including the Pope.
To combat the Protestant surge, the Catholic launched
their Counter Reformation, which led to asceticism (self-
deprivation as a route to salvation).
This led to intolerance to un-Catholic practices and ideas.
We saw the burning of books and even paintings in
Spain.
To fight protestant, the Spanish Inquisition used torture
to extract confessions from heretics, with the blessing of
the Catholic church.
The Spanish royal family saw themselves as the defender
of the Catholic faith.
It was in this socio-political environment that the Rokeby
Venus was painted.
The Spanish Inquisition, a legal religious commission with
power to sentence, was started in 15C to persecute the
Jews and the Moors to rid Spain of heretics. It was finally
abolished by Napoleon in 1813, more than 300 years
later.
Spanish Inquisition
4. Using very limited colours, in
this early Caravagesque
painting He made grandeur and
gravity out of an daily event. He
painted the water seller (right)
with formality and respects.
He showed his painting skill by
the light falling on the glass
and the wet jug.
The Water Seller of Seville
5. Velazquez’s painting skills on light falling on the glass, the wet jug and the dry water container.
The Water Seller of Seville
6. Adoration of the Magi
Velazquez portrayed the Holy family in a direct way.
In particularly he drew our attention toward the newly
born Christ Baby and to the Virgin Mary, while St
Joseph looks up in admiration, while the three kings
kneel and presented their gifts of gold, frankincense
and myrrh.
8. The Robeby Venus. 1647-51, Oil on canvas. 122x77 cm. National Gallery, London.
Only surviving Velazquez’s nude, such painting was heretical. It must be painted for someone in
power. All the edges in the painting are softly defined. The smooth creamy flesh is the most
distinctive feature of the painting, in contrast with the folded slate-grey sheet.
Rokeby Venus
9. What is the mirror for? For Venus or for us?
Rokeby Venus
10. Some say beauty cannot be painted. Maybe Velazquez wanted to protect her identity.
Though the Venus acknowledged our present.
12. Very broad brush stroke. Is this ‘truth’ and not ‘reality’?
Rokeby Venus
13. Rokeby Venus
The Robeby Venus. 1647-51, Oil on canvas. 122x77 cm. National Gallery, London. .
14. Las Meninas, the Maids of Honour. Velazquez brilliantly arranged the people in this spatial maze. Although
the Infanta Margarite occupied the central place in the painting yet the painting is about Velazquez. It
marked the zenith of his achievement, as he proudly wore the Cross of Santiago. In the present of the King
and Queen, from the out-of-focus reflection on the mirror.
Las Meninas
15. Velazquez
King & Queen
posing on the
mirror’s
reflection
Princess Infanta
Margarita
A palace
marshal
Lady in waiting
Lady in waiting
Two
dwarfs
Nurse &
chaperon
18. Velazquez showed himself as the king’s painter and the knight of the order of Santiago. In the company of the
Spanish royal family, this painting summarized his life time achieve as a court painter par excellent.
19.
20.
21. 1. Apply a base colours.
2. Then created the effect
of light using darker
and lighter colours.
3. Finished of some the
finer details.
4. Added the cross after
he had been made a
knight of the order.
Painting Technique
25. This painting was painted in
Rome. It showed the humanity of
gods.
The painting depict the scene
when Apollo told Vulcan that his
wife, Venus, was in the arms of
his vest client, Mars.
In the painting Velazquez had
depicted a range of emotive
reaction to Apollo’s message.
Apollo and Vulcan
27. The drinkers were an extraordinary group of rough and weather beaten men. They were modeled on real
people, in contemporary clothes, They looked out of the painting with their drunken gleams on their faces,
drowning in the wine and free from the burden of daily living.
The Feast of Bacchus
30. Velazquez painted her with aged face and suspicious eyes, filled with missionary zeal and steely
intelligence. She held her cross with determination. She is personification of the religious super-ego. She is
ready to take the harsh, disapproving measures to curb disobedience, which she wearily expected. It
was Catholic answer to counter the Protestant’s purity.
Painted shortly before Jeronima left for Philippines to found the first convent there.
Mother Jeronima de la Fuente. 1620. Private Collection.
Jeronima de la Fuente
31. This magnificent silver robe of the king is deceptive. The closer
you get to the painting the more you are aware of his amazing
painting technique. What looks meticulously and labouredly
painted silver threads become a jumbo of hastily applied
brushstrokes. From a distance, Velazquez depended on our
eyes and brain to bland and see what we perceived. This
demonstrated his understanding of the sensation of lights that
is the bases of the Impressionist approach in the 19C.
Philip IV
33. This is a portrait of a noble, dignify and intelligent man with an intense gaze. This is
Velazquez’s most searching works.
Don Sebastian de Morra
34. It is painful to realize that de Morra, the
intelligent and dignified dwarf, was
employed for the amusement of the
court. Velazquez did not compromise
on his disability. The closed fisted
and shortened legs were honestly
depicted. His character is
strengthened with de Morra’s intense
and almost tearful gaze.
35. The painting was painted with a very
limited range of colours. Juan de
Pareja appeared on the painting as if
he was from the nobility. Velazquez
painted him with astounding dignity.
It was clear that he painted him with a
lot of respect.
Juan de Pareja was a Moor and he
was also a slave, working for
Velazquez. Velazquez freed him in
1654. He became a painter in his
own right.
If respect can be painted, this is it.
Juan de Pareja
36. Female Sibyl
Although the painting was
giving the called ‘Sibyl with
Tubula Rasa’ , there is some
doubt if the title is
appropriate. Sibyls were
female prophets who foretold
the coming of Jesus to the
Roman.
The clothing (not robes) and
the simply hair style
suggested otherwise.
37. Velazquez portrayed Pope Innocent X with
his weariness and mistrust that he was
well-known for. This is the man who held on
power with an iron grip. His calculated gaze
warn us to approach with care.
This painting is universally regarded as a
supreme masterpiece of portraiture not only
in the way he painted the subject but also his
psychological penetration on the
character.
Pope Innocent X
39. Aesop
Aesop, a Greek writer who lived in the 6C BC, is famous for his
fables illustrating truths about life and human nature. After having a
slave to two masters, he was freed as a reward for his wit and
wisdom and rose to prominence as a philosopher.
Velazquez depicted Aesop as a tired old man, who steered with
serious intelligent expression and great dignity.
40. Mars
Velazquez depicted Mars as a veteran,
instead of a heroic figure of brute
strength and courageous fighter. He
appeared to be deflated, peering out
enigmatically through the shadow cast
by his helmet.
41. Francisco Lezcano
The man is thought to be
Francisco Lezcano, who came to
court from in 1634. Not much is
known about the man.
Dwarfs and fools were exploited
by court culture, that saw them as
curiosities. Velazquez portrayed
him frankly. Having crawled up
on a rock, leaving his hot behind,
he looked slightly down on us.
This is one of four portraits that
depicted dwarfs and a fool, not a
subject usually painted by other
artists.
42. The latest of three portraits of
the Infanta Margarita by
Velazquez in the Kunst
historishches Museum. This
reflected the 17C relationship
between the two branches of
the Habsburgs – Spain and
Austria.
Infanta Margarita was born on
12 July 1651. She was
promised in early childhood to
her uncle and also cousin, the
crown prince Leopold, later
Emperor Leopold I.
These paintings of Infanta
Margarite were sent to Austria
to show how the young
princess was progressing.
Pope Infanta Margarita in a Blue Dress
43. These paintings of Infanta Margarite were sent to Austria to show how the young princess was progressing.
Pope Infanta Margarita in a Blue Dress
48. In the beginning 16C to mid-17, Spain was the
superpower in an uni-polar world. Apart from the
Americas, the Netherlands (including Belgium today),
Southern Italy, Austria, part of France and even the
Philippines belonged to Spain. Its powerful navy
sailed on all the oceans of the world.
Why is the King of Spain, the powerful man in world
built his enormous palace like a prison, the Escorial
just outside Madrid?
The Spanish King saw himself as the defender of
the Catholic faith. In response to the Protestant
Reformation, the Catholic preached a life style of
abstinence from worldly pleasures in pursuit of a
spiritual goals.
By the time of Diego Velazquez, Spain was already bankrupted, with an immense burden of debts. Gold
shipments from the New World were continued disrupted. Spain was at odds with reality (like Don Quixote in
the greatest Spanish novel by Cervantes). No expenses were spared on lavish displays or in erecting
Cathedrals, palaces of religion. The Church colluded the ruling class to create the most repressive
society in Western Europe. This lasted into the 20C. Spain was finally free from itself when Spain joined
the European Union.
It was under this climate that Diego Velazquez lived. This made his search for the ‘Truth’ in his paintings
that more surprising, while others glorified or in delusion.
17C Spain
Spain constantly went to wars with the Protestant states. The Thirty Years War, the Spanish Armada, the
French Wars of Religion just to name a few.
49. All rights reserved. Rights belong to their respective owners.
Available free for non-commercial and personal use.
Music – By Yasmin Levy, Naci En Alamo (I was born in
Alamo), Written in Ladino (Judeo-Espanol) and Flamenco
style, dating back to 500 year ago.
“I have no place. And I have no landscapes. I have no homeland. With my cold fingers I made a fire.
And with my heart I sing to you. The chords of my heart are crying.”
The
End
Few painters have achieved success so early and remained so successful throughout their lives as Velazquez. Even in his teens he was acclaimed as a master painter. By the age of 24 he had become Court Painter to King Philip IV. For nearly 40 years he produced an incomparable series of the king and of other figures at court. H e created an art as moving and as varied as any in Europe and less confined to its age than many other, seemingly freer, painters.
First Created 29/3/09
30.8.10 Ver 3.0 changed interval & inc Athen + Magarita
9.9.18 ver 4.0 Added half a dozen of portrays a major update