Art Collage JANG: Interesting Art Stories: 40. Las Meninas, Diego Velázquez, ACJ Art Academy

How are you?

On every Thursday, I am introducing the stories about various artists and their paintings with the title “Interesting Art Stories”.

The 40th story for this week is “Las Meninas” by Diego Velázquez.

“Las Meninas” is a 1656 painting by Diego Velázquez, the leading artist of the Spanish Golden Age, which is now in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, Spain.

Museo del Prado

This painting depicts Infanta Margaret Theresa, who was then 5 years old, surrounded by her maids, chaperone, bodyguard, two dwarfs and a dog.

Margaret Theresa of Spain

Velázquez, just behind them, is drawing at a large canvas and looks outward where a viewer of the painting would stand. In the background of the painting there is a mirror that reflects the king and queen, and they appear to be standing in a similar position to that of the viewer of the painting.

This painting has long been recognized as one of the most important paintings in Western art history. The Baroque painter Luca Giordano described the painting as the "theology of painting", and Thomas Lawrence, the president of the Royal Academy of Arts, described it as "the true philosophy of the art" in a letter to his successor David Wilkie.

Luca Giordano

Thomas Lawrence

In 17th-century Spain, when this painting was created, painters did not enjoy high social status because the painting at that time was regarded as a craft rather than an art such as poetry or music. Nevertheless, Velázquez gained the trust of Philip IV and served as a high-ranked official in his court.

Philip IV of Spain

Elizabeth of France, Philip IV's first wife, died in 1644, and their only son, Balthasar Charles, died two years later.

Elisabeth of France

Balthasar Charles

Philip, who had no children to inherit the throne, married Mariana of Austria again in 1649. The main character of this painting, Margaret Theresa, was their first child and their only child at the time of this painting.

Mariana of Austria

Later, Mariana gave birth to Theresa's short-lived brother, Philip Prospero (1657–1661), and then Charles, who succeeded to the throne as Charles II at the age of four.

Philip Prospero

Charles II of Spain

Philip himself resisted being portrayed in his old age, but allowed Velázquez to include him in this painting. In the early 1650s, he gave Velázquez the main room of the house where the late Balthasar Charles lived, which was then used as the palace museum, to use as his studio, where this painting was created. In his studio, there was a chair for King Philip, and he often sat in it and watched Velázquez work. King Philip, who loved art so much, seems to have been very fond of Velázquez.

During the 1640s and 1650s, Velázquez worked as a court painter and a curator of Philip IV for the collection of European art. Much of the collection currently owned by the Prado Museum, including works by Titian, Raphael, and Rubens, were acquired by Velázquez's efforts.

Diego Velázquez

In this painting, Philip IV and Mariana in the mirror appear to be standing in the position of the viewer, facing Theresa and her attendants from the outside of the pictorial space. Such mirror image gives the same effect as if the king and queen are "inside" of the pictorial space although they are "outside" the painting.

This painting is likely influenced by Jan van Eyck's “Arnolfini Portrait” in 1434. Because van Eyck’s painting at the time was hung in King Philip's palace, Velázquez would have been very familiar with the painting. The Arnolfini Portrait also includes a mirror that shows figures, like Velázquez's painting.

Arnolfini Portrait, Jan van Eyck

In 1692, the Neapolitan painter Luca Giordano became one of the few allowed to view paintings held in Philip IV's private apartments. He was very impressed by “Las Meninas” and was inspired to paint “A Homage to Velázquez”, now owned by the National Gallery in London.

A Homage to Velázquez, Luca Giordano

In 1666, ten years after “Las Meninas” was painted, Juan Bautista Martínez del Mazo painted Margaret Theresa, who was then 15 years old. In the background of the painting, there are figures in the doorways, which have been further receded, one of which is the new king, Charles II, the brother of Margaret Theresa, and another is the dwarf Maribarbola.

Infanta Margarita Teresa of Spain in
Mourning Dress, Juan Bautista Martínez del
Mazo

Mazo's portrait of the widowed Queen Mariana also shows Maribarbola and other dwarfs and a young king through a doorway, and his portrait of “The Family of the Artist” also shows a similar composition to that of “Las Meninas.”

Mariana of Spain in Mourning, Juan Bautista
Martínez del Mazo

The Family of the Artist, Juan Bautista Matinez del Mazo

Francisco Goya referred to “Las Meninas” as the model for his “Charles IV of Spain and His Family”, and in both paintings Velázquez and Goya are working on a canvas.

Charles IV of Spain and His Family, Francisco Goya

In 1882, John Singer Sargent painted a homage to “Las Meninas” in his “The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit,” and the Irish artist John Lavery chose “Las Meninas” as the basis for his portrait, “The Royal Family at Buckingham Palace.”