FA 30b Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Aquatint, Court Painter, Los Caprichos
4 Apr 2017
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Many figures in the royal family are depicted. They aren"t a particularly impressive group, despite the there fancy costumes and jewels. Compared to earlier court artist"s in spain. He seems to resist the temptation to flatter and eternalize the royal family. A critic, gautier, wrote they appear as the corner baker and his wife after they won the lottery . Goya is in the background behind a large easel. The queen is positioned in a similar way to the infanta maria. Maybe a sly comment on the queen"s lack of intelligence. Velazquez has an elaborate conceit surrounding the mirror. But there is no mirror in this work. But a scholar suggests that the whole work is made, by the royal family looking in a mirror, and this work was made by painting that reflection. For velazquez the royal presence was very important, because it validated his knighthood. Whereas goya doesn"t seem to care about that.
