ARTH 206 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Malle Babbe, Court Painter, Arnolfini
Document Summary
Portrait of rulers ---- spanish royal family: velazquez is the court painter to the spanish royal family for about 35 years. Shows their wealth through clothing and setting. Velazquez paints himself in the portrait painting the portrait: status of artist and suggestion of the intimacy he had with the royal family. One piece in the background is illuminated: mirror reflection or painting of the king and queen ----- possible reference to van. Emphasis on princess margarita rather than the king and queen. Shows royal family in a snapshot of daily life rather than a staged, conventional portrait: redirecting expectations of what a royal portrait should look like. Rubens, raising of the cross, 1610-11, antwerp, flanders. Flemish baroque: heightened drama and emotion of traditional baroque style. Breaks through picture plane through motion and different viewpoints. All 3 panels are unified, part of the same scene.
