The Relief of Genoa

historical

In 1630 the count-duke of Olivares decided to initiate a lavish program of artistic display by the construction of a new pleasure palace on the eastern border of Madrid which came to be known as the Buen Retiro. Here theatrical plays and spectacles would be staged, tournaments and jousts would be organized, and painting, sculpture, and tapestry would be displayed. Beginning in 1630 with a modest renovation of the royal apartment in San Jerónimo, the project was expanded in 1632 and again in 1633, culminating in a sizable complex of buildings surrounded by enormous gardens adorned by fountains, alleys and hermitage chapels.

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About the Artist

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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