Portrait of the court dwarf known as el Primo, after Velázquez

Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) Spanish
 After Velázquez (Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez) Spanish

Not on view

Velázquez’s painted portraits of court jesters convey profound insight to their personalities. In 1644 the entertainer known as El Primo accompanied King Philip IV to Aragon, where he sat for Velázquez. In his etching based on that work, Goya accentuates the intensity of the sitter's gaze; the dark background created by a dense network of lines serves to project his figure toward the viewer. Here, El Primo appears altogether more assertive, even confrontational—subtle differences intentionally introduced by Goya that make his interpretation distinct.

Portrait of the court dwarf known as el Primo, after Velázquez, Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) (Spanish, Fuendetodos 1746–1828 Bordeaux), Etching

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.

Portrait of the court dwarf known as el Primo, after Velázquez, Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) (Spanish, Fuendetodos 1746–1828 Bordeaux), Etching
Portrait of the court dwarf known as el Primo, after Velázquez, Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) (Spanish, Fuendetodos 1746–1828 Bordeaux), Etching

This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.