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The Surrender of Breda is a 1635 painting in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, by Diego Velázquez who had led the Spanish Golden Age. Its large number of individuals, such as the soldiers and military generals is divided in two planes that includes the exchange of keys to the Spanish. Velázquez, a Spanish painter, had his own individual and naturalistic style during a time when Baroque art was at its peak in activity. Velázquez was important figure in Western art.

Background

The Surrender of Breda was commissioned by Spanish minister, count-duke Olivares, when in 1630, Olivares chose to improve the image of the Spanish court by building a pleasure palace east of Madrid. This palace is now known today as the Buen Retiro.

Olivares had commissioned three separate contents of the painting for this palace, called the Hall of Realms. Velazquez was requested to paint relating to the subject of horse riding, one battle scene, and The Surrender of Breda. This work completed by Velazquez represents the most significant and undaunted paintings in the Hall of Realms, as well as one of Velazquez's best works of art.

Through the hundreds of paintings that Olivares made use of, The Surrender of Breda needed to be magnificent, and would become the most important piece in the Hall of Realms.

Reception

The response to Velazquez's artwork was grand at the very least, with the critical reaction being that The Surrender of Breda was the most impressive Spanish works of art. Also, the artwork solidified Velazquez's effort as the most superb depiction of Spanish Baroque, provided that Baroque art was closely connected to humanity and how people should be seen and represented.

Description

The Surrender of Breda depicts a military victory, however Velázquez left out the blood and gore of the situation. Velázquez instead, captures the end of the battle, as he also differentiates the two sides, one which is the Dutch, and the other side, the Spanish. The art piece also presents the Spanish as a strong force on multiple levels. In addition to including both sides of the battle, Velázquez also gives facial expressions of fatigue, giving a very honest view of the reality to war.

Commissioned by the Spanish king Philip IV between 1630 and 1635, not far from Madrid in Spain, and was chosen as only one of 20 large paintings intended for the Hall of Realms. The intention of the painting by Velázquez was to glorify the military accomplishments and acquisition by the Spanish, uplifting Philip IV.

Spain shortly before the finish of The Surrender of Breda, was one of the European countries in the biggest decline throughout Europe's history. Also, Spanish art at the time was not very popular in terms of the noble's interests and pursuits. Velázquez was slated to struggle early on in his career, with little promise due to the facts effecting Spain.

Composition

The composition of the work is quite difficult to gauge due to the large number of individuals, however, Velázquez addresses this detail by painting the setting across two halves, where battle and restriction takes place in the background. The surrender portion of the scene takes place in the foreground, with the clear leading individuals placed in the center. The attention of the artwork is to the foreground, where the exchange of the keys are show in the very front, while in the background, the smokey sky shows evidence of destruction and death.

In the painting, the Dutch weapons have appeared to be either destroyed, thrown, or even put away in result of their performance of the battle. The painting also depicts a large number of Spanish soldiers in comparison to much less Dutch soldiers presented throughout the piece. Velàzquez used effective perception and aerial techniques that support The Surrender of Breda as one of the finest works by Velázquez.

Color

The Surrender of Breda, is painted in much lighter and brighter colors in comparison to other works of art by Velázquez. It is believed that the inspiration from the colors to the horses and soldiers, that Venetian painting holds a massive influence on the art piece. The colors of the art piece shows tranquility and the use of color connecting to a warm tone is just part of what makes the work extremely masterful.

There is no use of violent reds or bright blues, rather calm brown colors with dark shadows in the foreground are used. Velázquez's use of light and dark contrasts is one of the many reasons why the art work is considered to be masterfully completed. Also, there is believed to be a connection between Velázquez's use of color, as he had taken a trip to Italy to study Renaissance art. In addition to the color techniques he became equipped to, Velázquez also gained improved skills with space, perspective and light.

Painting materials

An in-depth analysis and investigation was conducted to examine Velázquez's The Surrender of Breda around 1989 in Museo Prado. In the analysis, it was acknowledged that Velázquez used many of the similar pigments that he had used in other paintings of his. These pigments included lead white with calcite, azurite mixed with small amounts of charcoal black, ochres and vermilion. The painted was produced on Canvas that is sized 307 cm x 367 cm.

Influence

One of Velázquez's closest friends, Peter Paul Rubens, has been cited to be an inspiration for the work connected to The Surrender of Breda. The two Baroque artists may not have similar style to be exact, however Ruben's prior works such as The Reconciliation of Esau and Jacob, produced in 1624, has resemblance in terms of its composition and philosophical concepts. More commonly, Velázquez's piece has been tied to Rubens' Meeting of King Ferdinand of Hungary and Cardinal, completed in 1635. The possibility of influence with Rubens' later work has been argued, as both Velazquez and Rubens completed their work around the same time. Although that is most likely the truth, both artists produced very similar work in addition to having such a close relationship.

https://www.artble.com/artists/diego_velazquez/paintings/the_surrender_of_breda. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)</ref>

https://colourlex.com/project/velazquez-surrender-of-breda/

https://www.wga.hu/html_m/v/velazque/04/0401vela.html