María Teresa de Borbón y Vallabriga, later Condesa de Chinchón

1783

Francisco Goya

Associated Names
Francisco Goya
Artist, Spanish, 1746 - 1828
A young girl with pale skin, rosy cheeks, and blond hair stands facing us in front of a landscape with forests and mountains in this vertical portrait painting. The girl looks at us with wide, gray eyes under delicately arched eyebrows. She has a short, rounded nose, and her full, pink lips are parted. Her smooth, rounded cheeks are flushed. She wears a lace-trimmed, sky-blue, scoop-necked bodice that comes to a V at her waist, a full, ankle-length black skirt, and a white bonnet with a royal-blue ribbon, which has a pink rose at the bow. Her long, white, lacy veil, called a mantilla, drapes over the hat, over her shoulders, and to her waist. One end of the mantilla drapes over her left wrist, to our right. The other end is pinned under the back of her other hand, which rests against that hip. One cobalt-blue, pointed shoe with a silver buckle peeks out under her skirt. A small, shaggy, white-haired dog sits at her feet to our right. A low, gray stone wall behind the girl and dog angles away from us to the left. Some plants with dark green leaves grow in front of the wall to our left. Beyond the wall, pine-green, treed foothills rise to meet rocky, nickel-gray mountains under a ice-blue sky with pale, petal-pink clouds kicking up over the mountains. An inscription in all capital letters is painted in black in the lower left corner: “LA S.D. MARIA TERESA HIXA DEL SER. INFANTE D. LUIS DE EDAD DE DOS ANOS Y NUEVE MESES.” A crimson-red letter “B.” is painted to the left nearby. In the lower right corner, the number “15.” is painted in white and the number “5.” is painted in red.

Media Options

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Lively and clever, the Spanish king’s eldest niece was just four-and-a-half years old when she posed for this portrait. Her confident stance and white lace mantilla (Spanish headdress) give the impression of maturity. The low viewpoint makes her look taller, as do the mountains in the background of the palace terrace. María Teresa’s father chose to marry below his rank, so the family was exiled to Ávila, Spain. They often invited artists to live with them there. Goya likely painted this portrait while staying at their home in August and September 1783. This was the first of four portraits that Goya would paint of María Teresa, who would later champion Spanish independence from France.

On View
West Building, Main Floor, Gallery M52

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    oil on canvas

  • Credit Line

    Ailsa Mellon Bruce Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall: 134.5 x 117.5 cm (52 15/16 x 46 1/4 in.)
    framed: 154.3 x 136.8 x 5.7 cm (60 3/4 x 53 7/8 x 2 1/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1970.17.123

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Commissioned by the Infante Don Luis de Borbón [1727-1785], Palace of Arenas de San Pedro, near Avila; by inheritance to his daughter, the sitter [1779-1828], Palace at Boadilla del Monte, near Madrid;[1] by inheritance to her only child, Carlota Luisa de Godoy y Borbón [1800-1886], Condesa de Chinchón, Duquesa de Alcudia y de Sueca, Boadilla del Monte, in whose possession it was recorded in 1867 and 1886;[2] by inheritance to her son, Adolfo Ruspoli [1822-1914], Duque de Sueca, Conde de Chinchón;[3] possibly bought in or purchased by the family at his (liquidation sale, Paris, 7 February 1914);[4] his daughter, Maria Teresa Ruspoli y Alvarez de Toledo, wife of Henri-Melchior Cognet Chappuis, Comte de Maubou de la Roue, Paris;[5]; her nephew, Don Camilo Carlos Adolfo Ruspoli y Caro [1904-1975], Conde de Chinchón, Duque de Alcudia y de Sueca, Madrid, by 1951.[6] Sold by the family by March 1957 to (Wildenstein & Co., New York);[7] purchased 2 March 1959 by Ailsa Mellon Bruce, New York;[8] gift to NGA 1970.

[1]Pierre Gassier, "Les portraits peints par Goya pour l'Infant Don Luis de Borbón à Arenas de San Pedro", Revue de l'Art 43 (1979): 21, note 24. [2] Charles Yriarte, Goya: sa biographie et le catalogue de l'oeuvre (Paris, 1867): 138; El Conde de la Viñaza, Goya: su tiempo, su vida, sus obras (Madrid, 1887): 225, no. 29. See also Gassier 1979, 21, note 26. Biographical information on the Condesa and her descendants is given by Almanach de Gotha (Leipzig, 1939): 614-615; Juan Moreno de Guerra y Alonso, Guía de la grandeza (Madrid, 1917): 52; World Nobility and Peerage, vol. 87 (London, 1955): 158, 171; Domingo Araujo Affonso, Robert Cuny, Alberto de Mestas, Simon Konarski, and Hervé Pincteau, Le sang de Louis XIV, 2 vols. (Braga, 1961), 1:192; 2:492-497. [3] Recorded in his possession by Richard Oertel, Francisco de Goya (Leipzig, 1907): 54 and Albert F. Calvert, Goya: An Account of his Life and Peace (London, 1908): 60. Also noted in 29 November 1988 letter from Ay-Whang Hsia of Wildenstein & Co., New York, NGA curatorial files. [4] According to Cleveland Museum of Art records (European Paintings of the 16th, 17th, and 18th Centuries; Cleveland, 1982; p. 486) for Goya's Portrait of the Infante Don Luis de Borbón, which has the same provenance as the NGA portrait, Adolfo Ruspoli died in Paris on 4 February 1914, after which his estate was liquidated on 7 February 1914. Xavier Desparmet Fitz-Gerald, L'oeuvre peint de Goya ,4 vols. (Paris, 1928-1950):2:13, no. 292 claims that this painting was in the liquidation sale. Perhaps it was bought in or purchased by the family at this time. [5] 29 November 1988 letter from Wildenstein's. [6] 29 November 1988 letter from Wildenstein's. [7] 29 November 1988 letter from Wildenstein's. [8] Purchase date from Wildenstein's is noted in the Ailsa Mellon Bruce notebook, NGA curatorial files.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1986

  • Goya: The Condesa de Chinchon and Other Paintings, Drawings, and Prints from Spanish and American Private Collections and the National Gallery of Art, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1986-1987, unpaginated brochure.

2001

  • Goya: La imagen de la mujer [Goya: Images of Women], Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2001-2002, no. 30 (Spanish cat.), no. 21 (English cat.), color repro.

2006

  • Goya e la tradizione italiana, Fondazione Magnani-Rocca, Parma, 2006, no. 27, repro.

2012

  • Goya y el Infante Don Luis: el exilio y el reino: arte y ciencia en la época de la ilustración española, Palacio Real de Madrid, 2012-2013.

2014

  • Goya: Order & Disorder, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2014-2015, no. 48, repro.

Bibliography

1867

  • Yriarte, Charles. Goya, sa biographie et le catalogue de l'oeuvre. Paris, 1867: 138.

1869

  • Lefort, Paul. "Francisco Goya y Lucientes." In Charles Blanc et al. Histoire des peintres de toutes les écoles: Ecole espagnole. Paris, 1869: 6, 12.

1887

  • Viñaza, Conde de la (Cipriano Muñoz Manzano). Goya: su tiempo, su vida, sus obras. Madrid, 1887: 225, no. 29.

1900

  • Lafond, Paul. "Goya." Revue de l'Art Ancien et Moderne 7 (1900): 46.

1902

  • Benusan, Samuel Levy. "Goya: His Times and Portraits." The Connoisseur 2 (1902): 31; 4 (1902): 122.

1907

  • Oertel, Richard. Francisco de Goya. Leipzig, 1907: 54-55.

1908

  • Calvert, Albert F. Goya: An Account of His Life and Works. London, 1908: 124, no. 60.

1914

  • Sentenach, Narciso. Los grandes retratistas en España. Madrid, 1914: 112-113.

1916

  • Beruete y Moret, Aureliano de. Goya, pintor de retratos. Madrid, 1915: 22-23, 171, no. 64. (also English ed. translated by Selwyn Brinton. London, 1922: 26-28, 205, no. 66.).

1921

  • Loga, Valerian von. Francisco de Goya. Berlin, 1921: 42, 188, no. 153.

1923

  • Mayer, August L. Francisco de Goya. Munich, 1923: 12-13, 186, no. 184. Translated by Robert West [pseud.]. London, 1924.

1928

  • Desparmet Fitz-Gerald, Xavier. L'oeuvre peint de Goya. 4 vols. Paris, 1928-1950: 1:15; 2:13, no. 292.

1930

  • Derwent, Lord George Harcourt Johnstone. Goya: An Impression of Spain. London, 1930: 32.

1951

  • Sánchez Cantón, Francisco Javier. Vida y obras de Goya. Madrid, 1951: 28, 167. Translated by Paul Burns. Madrid, 1964.

1964

  • Trapier, Elizabeth de Gué. Goya and His Sitters. New York, 1964: 2-3, 52, no. 1, figs. 1-2.

1965

  • Held, Jutta. "Literaturbericht: Francisco de Goya: die Gemälde." Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte 28 (1965): 235-236.

1967

  • Lurie, Ann Tzeutschler. "Francisco Jos de Goya y Lucientes: Portrait of the Infante Don Luis de Borbón." Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 54 (1967): 5, fig. 7.

1970

  • Gassier, Pierre, and Juliet Wilson. Vie et oeuvre de Francisco Goya. Paris, 1970. Translated by C. Hauch and J. Wilson. New York, 1971: 17-18, 61, 78, 94, no. 210, color repro. 59 (also 1981 ed.: same pp. as above.).

1971

  • Gudiol y Ricart, José. Goya: 1746-1828; Biography, Analytical Study and Catalogue of His Paintings. Translated by Kenneth Lyons. 4 vols. New York, 1971: 1:52, 243, no. 150; 2:figs. 244, 246, color fig. 245.

1974

  • Walker, John. Self-Portrait with Donors. Boston, 1974: 198-200, repro. 199.

  • De Angelis, Rita. L'opera pittorica completa di Goya. Milan, 1974: 98, no. 158, repro.

1975

  • European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 160, repro., as Condesa de Chinchón.

1977

  • Wethey, Harold. "El Greco's' St. John the Evangelist with St. Francis' at the Uffizi." Pantheon 35 (1977): 205.

1978

  • King, Marian. Adventures in Art: National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. New York, 1978: 76, pl. 45.

1979

  • Salas, Xavier de. Goya. Translated by G. T. Culverwell. London, 1979: 50, 177, no. 145, color repros. 33-35.

  • Gassier, Pierre. "Les portraits peints par Goya pour l'Infant Don Luis de Borbón à Arenas de San Pedro." La Revue de l'Art 43 (1979): 13, 18, fig. 2.

1981

  • Glendinning, Nigel. "Goya's Patrons." Apollo 114 (1981): 238.

1983

  • Gassier, Pierre. "Goya, pintor del Infante D. Luis de Borbón." In Goya en las collecciones madrileñas. Exh. cat. Prado, Madrid, 1983: 18.

1984

  • Camón Aznar, José. Francisco de Goya. 4 vols. Saragossa, 1: 150-151, repro. 274.

  • Agueda, Mercedes, and Xavier de Salas, eds. Francisco de Goya: cartas a Martín Zapater. Madrid, 1984: 107-108, no. 49; 109, n. 7; 121, n. 13.

  • Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 401, no. 568, color repro., as Condesa de Chinchón.

1985

  • European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 184, repro.

1986

  • Arnaiz, José Manuel, and Angela Montero. "Goya y el Infante Don Luis." Anticuario 27 (1986): 44-45, repros. 48, 49.

  • Gassier, Pierre. "La contessa di Chinchón." Goya nelle collezioni private di Spagna. Exh. cat. Collezione Thyssen-Bornemisza, Lugano, 1986: 18-19, repro. 19.

1988

  • Symmons, Sarah. Goya: In Pursuit of Patronage. London, 1988: 98, repro. 99.

1990

  • Brown, Jonathan, and Richard G. Mann. Spanish Paintings of the Fifteenth through Nineteenth Centuries. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1990: 27-32, color repro. 28.

1991

  • Kopper, Philip. America's National Gallery of Art: A Gift to the Nation. New York, 1991: 263.

  • Gingold, Diane J., and Elizabeth A.C. Weil. The Corporate Patron. New York, 1991: 151, color repro.

1992

  • National Gallery of Art, Washington. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 89, repro.

2001

  • Goya: Images of Women. Exh. cat. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid; National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2001-2002: no. 21.

2003

  • Hughes, Robert. Goya. New York, 2003: 113-114, color repro.

2020

  • Tomlinson, Janis. A. Goya--A Portrait of the Artist. Princeton, 2020: 73-74, fig. 8.

Inscriptions

lower left: LA S.D. MARIA TERESA / HIXA DEL SER. INFANTE / D. LUIS / DE EDAD DE DOS ANOS Y NUEVE MESES (The S[enorita] D[oña] Teresa, daughter of the Most Serene Infante, Don Luis, at the age of two years and nine months); bears inventory marks from the collection at Boadilla del Monte, probably by nineteenth-century hands, at lower left: B; at lower right: 15.5

Wikidata ID

Q11824923

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