casadelpoetatragicogplus:Velázquez’s fame also rests heavily on his very many portraits

casadelpoetatragicogplus:Velázquez’s fame also rests heavily on his very many portraits of the Spanish court; especially so the face of King Philip IV is very easily remembered by art enthusiasts ;) However, in this case as well I have decided not to post those at all but still to pay respect to Diego’s court painter activity in another way. He would perhaps even prefer this himself ;) Here are the people that were on the other side of court glamour : buffoons, court jesters and dwarfs. Dwarfs, fools and jesters were present in large numbers at the Court of Philip IV. They were maintained by the King according to a tradition extending back well into the Middle Ages. The tradition was motivated by charity, but many ‘fools’ came to be appreciated for their wit, arousing great affection and sometimes achieving great fame. Because they were not taken seriously, they were licenced to parody or flout the etiquette with which courtiers and royalty had to conform, which seems to have been especially appreciated at the rigid Court of Philip IV.Under cover of joking, the court jesters or buffoons, in Spanish truhanes, would often tell their lords and masters the home truths openly discussed by the ordinary people. They could move freely in the king’s presence, trying to amuse the naturally melancholic Philip IV with their caustic remarks. To judge by their salaries, their position in society was quite high. Velázquez himself, on entering the service of the palace as a court painter, had at first been classed with the royal servants, and as a result shared the life of these truhanes.from Web Gallery of Art -- source link

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