Las Meninas painted in 1656 with oil on canvas, is a depiction of everyday life of the royal Spanish family where Diego Velazquez was able to show a real moment in time, avoiding idealism and capturing truth. Velazquez was a court painter of the royal family, King Philip IV and Queen Maria Anna, which he worked hard at to achieve, and wanted to show this achievement to others. When viewing the painting the obvious focal point is Princess Margarita who stands out from the center, dressed in white, with light illuminating her face. Although Princess Margarita could be the main focus of Las Meninas the more important person in the painting is Velazquez himself. By Velazquez placing himself in a scene of everyday palace life with the king and queen present he is showing off his earned noble status, proving his worthiness as a court painter, and honoring a friendship between him and the royals.
Velazquez was known for painting scenes that captured acts from real life with the use of lights and darks and shied away from painting moments that were focused on idealism. Starting in Seville, Velazquez worked his way up to become a court …show more content…
During the time artists and members of royal families weren’t depicted together so the fact that they are shows that the two formed a relationship during Velazquez courtship. After the completion of Las Meninas, Velazquez achieved his dream and was appointed knight, and then following his death King Phillip IV had an artist paint the red cross of Santiago, which represented his knighthood, to Velazquez garment in Las Meninas. This action not only further proves their good relationship it shows that “if Las Meninas was indeed an affirmation of the nobility of painter and paintings, the gesture was also the king’s clever way of acknowledging and, in a profound sense, completing its meaning” (Brown
Velazquez was known for painting scenes that captured acts from real life with the use of lights and darks and shied away from painting moments that were focused on idealism. Starting in Seville, Velazquez worked his way up to become a court …show more content…
During the time artists and members of royal families weren’t depicted together so the fact that they are shows that the two formed a relationship during Velazquez courtship. After the completion of Las Meninas, Velazquez achieved his dream and was appointed knight, and then following his death King Phillip IV had an artist paint the red cross of Santiago, which represented his knighthood, to Velazquez garment in Las Meninas. This action not only further proves their good relationship it shows that “if Las Meninas was indeed an affirmation of the nobility of painter and paintings, the gesture was also the king’s clever way of acknowledging and, in a profound sense, completing its meaning” (Brown