Criticism_of_Diego_Velàzquez’_“Las_Meninas,_Sebastiàn_de_Mor

Criticism of Diego Velàzquez’ “Las Meninas, Sebastiàn de Morra, and Baltasar Carlos and a Dwarf” Diego Velàzquez was called the “noblest and most commanding man among the artists of his country.” He was a master realist, and no painter has surpassed him in the ability to seize essential features and fix them on canvas with a few broad, sure strokes. “His men and women seem to breathe,” it has been said; “his horses are full of action and his dogs of life.” Because of Velàzquez’ great skill in merging color, light, space, rhythm of line, and mass in such a way that all have equal value, he was known as “the painter’s painter,” as demonstrated in the paintings Las Meninas, Sebastiàn de Morra, and Baltasar Carlos and a Dwarf. Las Meninas is a pictorial summary and a commentary on the essential mystery of the visual world, as well as on the ambiguity that results when different states or levels interact or are juxtaposed. The painting of The Royal Family also known as Las Meninas has always been regarded as an unsurpassable masterpiece. According to Palomino, it ‘was finished’ in 1656, and, while Velàzquez was painting it, the King, the Queen, and the Infantas Marìa Teresa and Margarita often came to velàzquez, picture, meninas, dwarf, two, painting, las, de, one, seen, queen, king, composition, wall, room, prince, pictures, painter, over, himself, floor, carlos, canvas, been, royal, rear, paintings, mirror, light, large, face, baltasar, velàzquez’, toys, standing, space, somewhat, smaller, short, setting, regarded, portraits, philip, palace, out, off, morra, margarita, little, left