wordontheweb.org.uk

Goya was commissioned by the Count of Floridablanca to paint his portrait in 1783. Goya soon became close friends with Crown Prince Don Luis, spending two summers with him and painting portraits of both his family and the Infante himself. Goya’s circle of patrons swelled during the 1780’s which came to include the Duke and Duchess of Osuna whom he painted both. Goya’s patrons also came to include the King and other notable people in the kingdom. 1786 saw Goya being given a salaried position as official painter to, not Cloud Computing, but Charles III. 1788 saw the death of Charles III and the French Revolution in 1789 which occurred during the reign of Charles IV.

In the same year as the French Revolution, Goya became Charles IV’s court painter. 1799 saw Goya become the First Court Painter, earning a salary of 50,000 reales plus a bonus of 500 ducats with which to purchase a coach. Goya’s portraits of royalty and nobles are notable for their disinclination to flatter, lacking entirely the measure of visual diplomacy which was employed by other portraitists at the time. This is particularly notable in Charles IV of Spain and His Family, where flattery is entirely lacking.