ZACARIAS GONZALEZ VELAZQUEZ (1763 / 1834) "Peasants playing cards"

Reference bibliography: - Berta Núñez, "Zacarías González de Velázquez (1763-1834), Fundación de Apoyo a la Historia del Arte Hispánico, Madrid, 2000, pp. 231-232. Given their size and subject matter, this pair of canvases with their gentle bucolic theme must have formed part of the series of paintings which, on the artist's death, were awarded to his daughter, Mariana González Velázquez y Fernández. In the Inventory of Assets of 1834 they are described as: "A collection of fourteen paintings of country subjects; the twelve are one foot and seven inches high by one foot and three inches wide". Given the stylistic characteristics of Zacarías González de Velázquez's works and coinciding in subject matter and measurements, it is clear that these works may have been part of the aforementioned series, in which the painter depicted scenes of rural life in a humane and kindly manner with an idyllic treatment. They are possibly copies of a series by Paolo Molandi that belonged to the gallery of the painter José de Madrazo. This is evidenced by the initials "PM" on the white earthenware plate of the "Peasants Preparing Lunch". Pair of oil paintings on canvas. 44,5 x 35 cm.