CIRCLE OF CARLOS LUIS DE RIBERA (Rome, 1815-Madrid, 1891), circa 1850.

Circle of CARLOS LUIS DE RIBERA (Rome, 1815-Madrid, 1891), circa 1850. "Portrait of a lady. Oil on canvas. Relined It presents damages and repainting. Measurements: 74 x 57,5 cm. A defiant woman directs her look to the spectator, regal and confident, the lady rises imposing on a neutral background, leaving only her bust in sight. Both her clothes and her careful hairstyle show her high social status, although she wears no jewellery and her pearly skin is unadorned. The composition of the work follows the classical tradition of portraiture; however, both the tones chosen by the artist and the aesthetics of the woman place the piece within the aesthetics of Romanticism. The son of the artist Juan Antonio Ribera, Carlos Luis belonged to a well-to-do family connected with the upper echelons of society, to such an extent that his godparents were Charles IV and Maria Luis of Parma. At the age of fifteen he was awarded first prize at the San Fernando Academy, which enabled him to become a boarder, first in Rome and then in Paris. In 1835 he began to work at the San Fernando School of Fine Arts, and years later became honorary painter to the chamber of Queen Isabella II. His work was notable for his skill in portrait painting, although he also executed religious and literary paintings, albeit to a lesser extent. He is also known for his work as a designer of diplomas and official titles. His style was based on the French acamical tradition, with particular attention to drawing and the precepts of classicism. He exhibited in Paris between 1839 and 1855, at the exhibitions of the San Fernando Academy and the Artistic and Literary Lyceum and at the National Fine Arts Exhibitions in Madrid. He also frequently worked in fresco on large-scale decorations, such as the ceiling of the cabinet of ministers and the vault of the assembly hall of the Congress of Deputies and in the basilica of San Francisco el Grande in Madrid.