Antonio de Pereda

1611 – 1678

Spanish painter, active mainly in Madrid. He began as a history painter - his Relief of Genoa (Prado, Madrid, 1635) was painted for the Buen Retiro Palace in Madrid as part of the same series as Velázquez 's Surrender of Breda - but he is now best known for his still-lifes. The most famous painting associated with him is The Knight's Dream (also called The Dream of Life or Life is a Dream, Academy, Madrid, c. 1650), a splendidly sensuous composition, full of brilliantly painted still-life details, in which worldly pleasures and treasures are seen to be as insubstantial as a dream. It was a key work in the development of the moralizing still-life in Spain, influencing Valdés Leal in particular. However, the attribution to Pereda has recently been questioned, and Francisco de Palacios (1622/5-52) has been suggested as the author.

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