CIENCIAS SOCIALES
ED. PARA LA CIUDADANÍA
Pilar Sánchez
CAN A PAINTING BECOME A SYMBOL OF POWER?
This is an idealised image of the King, accurate enough in regard to his facial features but representing him as vigorously able to rule his kingdom. He wears a lavish cloak with the royal blue ground and gold fleur-de-lys of the Bourbon dynasty holding one symbol of his absolute royal power, the sceptre, with the crown on a stool behind him. The ermine trimming of his cloak is a reference to his role as supreme judge. In another engraving based upon this portrait, the artist Callet added the scales of justice on a medallion behind the King. Behind the medallion he also added the fasces, the rods and axe of the magistrates of ancient Rome. Copies of Callet’s engraving of the portrait by Duplessis would have adorned many of the official buildings of the kingdom and, for the majority of his subjects, this was the only image of their monarch that they might see.
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- Read the description of the Duplessis´painting while you stare the picture carefully.
- Draw arrows from each detail of the picture and complete with the information referred to the text.
- What sort of idea does the painter (and obviously the King) want to transmit? Does the King seem a normal person as the rest of us?
- Think about this sentence from the text: "Copies of Callet’s engraving of the portrait by Duplessis would have adorned many of the official buildings of the kingdom and, for the majority of his subjects, this was the only image of their monarch that they might see". People never had seen a picture of their King: there were no photographs of him and his portraits were hanging on the walls of Versailles. In our over stimulation visual era, can you imagine something like this?
ARE YOU AN HISTORICAL SHERLOCK HOLMES?
- The painting depicts Carlos II, the last Austria in Spain. He was Felipe IV and Maria of Austria (his niece)´s only heir. He was previous in time to Louis XVI of France, but it does not matter now for our target. You have to look at this new painting deeply and compare it with Duplessis´ portrait of Louis XVI.
- Is there any common bond between them? C´mon try to guess.
"If you have got a new point of view about the World, you’ll have to find new ways of showing it”
Mark Rothko
Pilar Sánchez has a double Degree in Literary Theory and Comparative Literature (2010), a Degree in History (2002), both by Salamanca University. She also has Advanced Studies in Philosophy.
She has been
working as a teacher and researcher in the Salamanca University, Art and Aesthetics Department, as an Art critic,
a team member in specialised publications, teacher of Spanish as a foreign language in other countries (Ireland), Secondary teacher of Social Studies and Spanish Language and Literature in Madrid
and Head of Department in SEK Les Alpes International School.
Her main goals when teaching are setting up the latest educational methodologies based on cooperative and blended learning, relying on emotional intelligence as one of the best means to enhance teacher and teenage students’ relationship.
