The Jester Don Juan of Austria
Diego Velazquez
Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez was a Spanish painter, the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV, and one of the most important painters of the Spanish Golden Age.
Max Resolution:635×1115 PX
Title:The Jester Don Juan of Austria
Artists:Diego Velazquez
Date:1632 - 1633
Style:Baroque
Genre:portrait
Medium:oil,canvas
Location:Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain
Dimensions:123×210 cm
Copyright:Public domain
The Jester Named Don John of Austria is a portrait by Velázquez, now in the Museo del Prado in Madrid. Its subject was a jester or bufón at the court of Philip IV of Spain from 1624 to 1654 who appeared in court comedies in front of important court figures. The subject's real name is unknown, but he came to be nicknamed after John of Austria, the son of Charles V, well known for his victory at Lepanto. He is shown dressed in a general's cloak and black doublet, is surrounded by abandoned helmets, armour and weapons, and with a fragment of a battle-scene of Lepanto in the background.
It was produced for display in the Torre de la Parada, a hunting lodge on the outskirts of Madrid in the Sierra de Guadarrama near El Pardo. Around 1635-40 this lodge was one of Philip IV's main architectural projects, since he was a great hunting fanatic who wanted somewhere to rest during the long time he spent on that pastime. Its other homes have been the Palacio del Buen Retiro (1701–16), the Royal Palace of Madrid (1772–1816) and the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (1816–1827), before it finally moved to its current home at the Prado in 1827.
It was produced for display in the Torre de la Parada, a hunting lodge on the outskirts of Madrid in the Sierra de Guadarrama near El Pardo. Around 1635-40 this lodge was one of Philip IV's main architectural projects, since he was a great hunting fanatic who wanted somewhere to rest during the long time he spent on that pastime. Its other homes have been the Palacio del Buen Retiro (1701–16), the Royal Palace of Madrid (1772–1816) and the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (1816–1827), before it finally moved to its current home at the Prado in 1827.