The Family of Philip V (1743)
Encyclopedia
The Family of Felipe V is an oil on canvas painting by the French artist Louis Michel van Loo, completed in 1743. It features life-sized depictions of Philip V of Spain
and his family. The painting depicts the royals in a fictional room and is in the style of French
baroque
and rococo
art. The painting is one of a trio of paintings which bear the same name and are dated 1723 by Jean Ranc
, a smaller 1738 version and the 1743 rendition.
in 1701. He trained under his father Jean Baptiste van Loo who, under the patronage of the Prince of Carignan, worked in Rome
and Turin
. Loo became court painter in 1737 having replaced Jean Ranc
. Loo came to the Spanish court of the House of Bourbon
in 1737 where he worked till 1752. He was the premier painter to Philip V's son Fernando VI but left Spain in 1757 returning to France. Van Loo, according to critics, was also influenced by Dutch art. Loo's younger brother Charles Amédée Philippe van Loo also had a successful career and went on to paint Empress Elizabeth of Russia.
in Madrid
. It is an expression of the strength the House of Bourbon
bought to the throne with Philip V's succession in 1700. The king, the central male, sits next to his second wife Queen Isabel, a granddaughter of Ranuccio II Farnese, Duke of Parma
. The couple had married in 1714 following the death of Maria Luisa of Savoy
, the king's beloved first wife who had been married to him at the instigation of his grandfather Louis XIV. Farnese's arm next to the crown is a symbolic representation of the power she had. Philip V and Maria Luisa's youngest son, Fernando, Prince of Asturias, heir to the throne at the time the painting was completed, is to the left of his father. The wife of Asturias, Barbara of Portugal
, sits next to Philip V's eldest daughter Maria Anna Victoria of Spain
; she had married Barbara's brother as part of a double marriage between Portugal
and Spain
in 1729.
The central group includes the children of Philip V and Farnese. Between the king and queen is their youngest son the Cardinal Infante Luis who was later the Count of Chinchón
. To the right of the queen is Infante Felipe
, later Duke of Parma, who stands above his wife Louise Élisabeth of France, Madame Infante, daughter of Louis XV. The two females standing above Madame Infante are the younger daughter of Philip V and Farnese, the Infanta's Maria Teresa Rafaela and her junior Maria Antonia Ferdnanda. Maria Teresa Rafaela would marry Madame Infante's brother Louis, Dauphin of France in 1745 and Maria Antonia Fernanda married the future King of Sardinia
in 1750. On the far right is Maria Amalia of Saxony
sitting next to her husband Carlos, King of Naples and Sicily
and future Carlos III of Spain. The couple were in Naples
at the time but returned to Spain at the death of Fernando VI in 1759.
The wealth of materials depicted in the painting such as jewels, fabrics and the use of bright colours was previously unseen in paintings in Spain which had been traditionally dark and sombre, and was a reference to the Flemish school. Partially hidden by the extensive theatrical red curtain that falls from the roof there is a balcony where a band plays a concert. The real characters are in a large room opening onto a garden.
Philip V of Spain
Philip V was King of Spain from 15 November 1700 to 15 January 1724, when he abdicated in favor of his son Louis, and from 6 September 1724, when he assumed the throne again upon his son's death, to his death.Before his reign, Philip occupied an exalted place in the royal family of France as a...
and his family. The painting depicts the royals in a fictional room and is in the style of French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
and rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
art. The painting is one of a trio of paintings which bear the same name and are dated 1723 by Jean Ranc
Jean Ranc
Jean Ranc was a French painter, mainly active in portraiture. He trained under his father Antoine Ranc and his father's former student Hyacinthe Rigaud and served in the courts of both Louis XV of France and Philip V of Spain.- Early life:Ranc "the younger" was the son of the renowned provincial...
, a smaller 1738 version and the 1743 rendition.
The artist
Loo was a French artist who was born in ToulonToulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
in 1701. He trained under his father Jean Baptiste van Loo who, under the patronage of the Prince of Carignan, worked in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
. Loo became court painter in 1737 having replaced Jean Ranc
Jean Ranc
Jean Ranc was a French painter, mainly active in portraiture. He trained under his father Antoine Ranc and his father's former student Hyacinthe Rigaud and served in the courts of both Louis XV of France and Philip V of Spain.- Early life:Ranc "the younger" was the son of the renowned provincial...
. Loo came to the Spanish court of the House of Bourbon
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
in 1737 where he worked till 1752. He was the premier painter to Philip V's son Fernando VI but left Spain in 1757 returning to France. Van Loo, according to critics, was also influenced by Dutch art. Loo's younger brother Charles Amédée Philippe van Loo also had a successful career and went on to paint Empress Elizabeth of Russia.
The painting
The painting is today held at the Museo del PradoMuseo del Prado
The Museo del Prado is the main Spanish national art museum, located in central Madrid. It features one of the world's finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection, and unquestionably the best single collection of...
in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
. It is an expression of the strength the House of Bourbon
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
bought to the throne with Philip V's succession in 1700. The king, the central male, sits next to his second wife Queen Isabel, a granddaughter of Ranuccio II Farnese, Duke of Parma
Ranuccio II Farnese, Duke of Parma
Ranuccio II Farnese was the sixth Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1646 until his death nearly 50 years later.-Birth and Succession:...
. The couple had married in 1714 following the death of Maria Luisa of Savoy
Maria Luisa of Savoy
Maria Luisa of Savoy was a Savoyard princess and the first wife of Philip V of Spain. She acted as Regent of Spain and had great influence over her husband...
, the king's beloved first wife who had been married to him at the instigation of his grandfather Louis XIV. Farnese's arm next to the crown is a symbolic representation of the power she had. Philip V and Maria Luisa's youngest son, Fernando, Prince of Asturias, heir to the throne at the time the painting was completed, is to the left of his father. The wife of Asturias, Barbara of Portugal
Barbara of Portugal
Barbara of Portugal was an Infanta of Portugal and later Queen of Spain as wife of Ferdinand VI of Spain.-Life in Portugal:...
, sits next to Philip V's eldest daughter Maria Anna Victoria of Spain
Mariana Victoria of Spain
Mariana Victoria of Spain was an Infanta of Spain and Queen consort of Portugal as wife of King Joseph I. The mother of Queen Maria I of Portugal, she also acted as Regent of Portugal during the last months of her husband's life and advisor to her daughter during her reign.-Background:Mariana...
; she had married Barbara's brother as part of a double marriage between Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
in 1729.
The central group includes the children of Philip V and Farnese. Between the king and queen is their youngest son the Cardinal Infante Luis who was later the Count of Chinchón
Count of Chinchón
The Spanish noble title Count of Chinchón was initially created by Charles I of Spain on 9 May 1520, granting the title to Fernando de Cabrera y Bobadilla...
. To the right of the queen is Infante Felipe
Philip, Duke of Parma
Philip of Spain was Duke of Parma from 1748 to 1765. He founded the House of Bourbon-Parma , a cadet line of the Spanish branch of the dynasty...
, later Duke of Parma, who stands above his wife Louise Élisabeth of France, Madame Infante, daughter of Louis XV. The two females standing above Madame Infante are the younger daughter of Philip V and Farnese, the Infanta's Maria Teresa Rafaela and her junior Maria Antonia Ferdnanda. Maria Teresa Rafaela would marry Madame Infante's brother Louis, Dauphin of France in 1745 and Maria Antonia Fernanda married the future King of Sardinia
Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia
Victor Amadeus III was King of Sardinia from 1773 until his death. Although he was politically conservative, he carried out numerous administrative reforms until declaring war on revolutionary France in 1792...
in 1750. On the far right is Maria Amalia of Saxony
Maria Amalia of Saxony
Maria Amalia of Saxony was a German princess from the House of Wettin and was the wife of Charles III of Spain; she was the Queen consort of Naples and Sicily from 1738 till 1759 and then Queen consort of Spain from 1759 until her death in 1760...
sitting next to her husband Carlos, King of Naples and Sicily
Charles III of Spain
Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...
and future Carlos III of Spain. The couple were in Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
at the time but returned to Spain at the death of Fernando VI in 1759.
The wealth of materials depicted in the painting such as jewels, fabrics and the use of bright colours was previously unseen in paintings in Spain which had been traditionally dark and sombre, and was a reference to the Flemish school. Partially hidden by the extensive theatrical red curtain that falls from the roof there is a balcony where a band plays a concert. The real characters are in a large room opening onto a garden.
The sitters
- Maria Anna Victoria of Spain, Princess of BrazilMariana Victoria of SpainMariana Victoria of Spain was an Infanta of Spain and Queen consort of Portugal as wife of King Joseph I. The mother of Queen Maria I of Portugal, she also acted as Regent of Portugal during the last months of her husband's life and advisor to her daughter during her reign.-Background:Mariana...
(1718-1781) future Queen of Portugal. - Barbara of Portugal, Princess of AsturiasBarbara of PortugalBarbara of Portugal was an Infanta of Portugal and later Queen of Spain as wife of Ferdinand VI of Spain.-Life in Portugal:...
(1711-1758) future Queen of Spain. - Fernando, Prince of Asturias (1713-1759) future King of Spain.
- King Felipe V (1683-1746)
- Cardinal Infante Luis (1727-1785) future Count of Chinchón.
- Queen Isabel (1692-1766)
- Infante FelipePhilip, Duke of ParmaPhilip of Spain was Duke of Parma from 1748 to 1765. He founded the House of Bourbon-Parma , a cadet line of the Spanish branch of the dynasty...
(1720-1765) future Duke of Parma. - Louise Élisabeth of France (1727-1759) future Duchess of Parma.
- Infanta Maria Teresa RafaelaMaria Teresa Rafaela of SpainMaria Teresa Rafaela of Spain Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain (María Teresa Antonia Rafaela; 11 June 1726 – 22 July 1746, Infanta of Spain, wife of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), son of Louis XV of France. She died in childbirth aged 20, leaving no surviving...
(1726-1746) future Dauphine of France. - Infanta Maria Antonia Fernanda (1729-1785) future Queen of Sardinia.
- Maria Amalia of SaxonyMaria Amalia of SaxonyMaria Amalia of Saxony was a German princess from the House of Wettin and was the wife of Charles III of Spain; she was the Queen consort of Naples and Sicily from 1738 till 1759 and then Queen consort of Spain from 1759 until her death in 1760...
(1724-1760) future Queen of Spain. - Carlo, King of NaplesCharles III of SpainCharles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...
(1716-1788) future King of Spain. - Infanta Isabel (1741-1763) future Archduchess of Austria.
- María Isabel Ana of Naples and Sicily (1743-1749) died in infancy.