José del Castillo (14 October 1737 – 5 October 1793) was a Spanish painter and a leader of the artistic movement Illustrious Absolutism. Many of his paintings were done on tapestries

Tapestry

Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven on a vertical loom, however it can also be woven on a floor loom as well. It is composed of two sets of interlaced threads, those running parallel to the length and those parallel to the width ; the warp threads are set up under tension on a...

.

Castillo made many attempts to become Royal Painter for the Spanish monarchy

Spanish monarchy

The Monarchy of Spain, constitutionally referred to as The Crown and commonly referred to as the Spanish monarchy or Hispanic Monarchy, is a constitutional institution and an historic office of Spain...

, but he was never successful. This was not due to a lack of talent, but rather because Castillo allied himself with the wrong noble. His patron

Patrón

Patrón is a luxury brand of tequila produced in Mexico and sold in hand-blown, individually numbered bottles.Made entirely from Blue Agave "piñas" , Patrón comes in five varieties: Silver, Añejo, Reposado, Gran Patrón Platinum and Gran Patrón Burdeos. Patrón also sells a tequila-coffee blend known...

, the Earl of Floridablanca, feuded bitterly with the Earl of Aranda

Aranda

-Places and events:*Aranda de Duero, a Spanish town located in Burgos province, the site of the Council of Aranda*Aranda , see Comarcas of Aragon*Aranda, Australian Capital Territory, a Canberra suburb named after the Arrernte people...

. The Earl of Aranda was favored by King Carlos III, and as a result, Ramón Bayeu

Ramón Bayeu

Ramón Bayeu was a Spanish Neoclassicist painter.-Biography:Born in Zaragoza, he was the brother of Francisco Bayeu, with whom he worked, and Manuel Bayeu, also a painter...

(Aranda's favorite painter) became Royal Painter.

After Carlos III died, Castillo tried again to become Royal Painter. Unfortunately, the new monarch, Carlos IV, decided to leave the position of Royal Painter vacant.

External links

• The Painter's Studio by Jose del Castillo