90 - A follower of VELÁZQUEZ (Seville, 1599 – Madrid, 1660); 19th century.

A follower of VELÁZQUEZ (Seville, 1599 – Madrid, 1660); 19th century. “Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of Austria, the Hunter.” Oil on canvas. Measurements: 55 x 31 cm; 72 x 47 cm (frame). This work is an interesting 19th-century interpretation of one of the most representative portraits from Diego Velázquez’s courtly oeuvre: “Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of Austria, the Hunter,” painted between 1632 and 1634 and housed at the Museo Nacional del Prado (inv. P01186). Velázquez’s original painting was part of a series of hunting-themed portraits intended to decorate the Torre de la Parada, Philip IV’s hunting lodge located in the El Pardo hills. In this decorative series, the monarch, his brother, and Prince Baltasar Carlos were depicted in hunting attire, accompanied by their weapons and dogs. These images did not merely reflect the court’s taste for hunting; they also projected an image of the royal family associated with mastery over nature, nobility, and the practice of aristocratic virtues. It is likely that this painting was created by one of the Prado’s copyists. In its galleries, countless aspiring artists have traditionally had the opportunity to learn by copying the works of the great masters. Although this was a very common practice during the 19th and early 20th centuries, today the Prado Museum is the only museum in the capital that allows a limited number of copyists to ensure they do not disrupt the flow of visitors.