Portraits of the Spanish Royals


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AnaC said:
According to the article, they also sent the dress made for the wedding of Juan Carlos and Sofía with the cape to Letizia, but the dress was too big and they ended up using the cape because it looked great with the black dress.

According to the press Queen Letizia started the photo session with her hair up and a tiara and the photographer asked for loose hair and no tiara. She's wearing the Diamond earrings and necklace from the joyas the pasar
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I hope we get to see the ones with Letizia's hair up and wearing a tiara as Letizia's hair always looks so much nicer in an up-style.
 
Boy, they look great, and very photogenic, as if we didn’t know already. (Even though I question why Felipe’s in the dark. Guess he’s being gallant.)

I like how you can see his wedding ring and Letizia’s “love moves everything” one.
 
It seems like the black Balenciaga is vintage as well. Does it say how old it is anywhere?
 
"What bothers me about this photo is that there’s nothing to symbolize Letizia’s position as queen. In the end, it’s simply a photo of a beautiful woman who could be anything—a model, an actress, you name it."
 
An Ard Ri said:
Queen Sofia does appear to be wearing the Order of Queen Luisa?
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It is not clear which miniature she is wearing, nor the jewels... in any case, I imagine that with that dress Letizia could only wear the sash... it does not seem very appropriate to put a brooch on an 76-year-old Balenciaga dress.
 
CentralRealeza said:
"What bothers me about this photo is that there’s nothing to symbolize Letizia’s position as queen. In the end, it’s simply a photo of a beautiful woman who could be anything—a model, an actress, you name it."
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A model or an actress is not in the palace wearing the Crown diamonds and stuff from the wedding of the former king and queen and being portrayed as a pair with the king. Like any good portrait, it’s the symbolism, too.

lula said:
It is not clear which miniature she is wearing, nor the jewels... in any case, I imagine that with that dress Letizia could only wear the sash... it does not seem very appropriate to put a brooch on an 76-year-old Balenciaga dress.
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According to the bank, it’s the order of Maria Luisa. Sofía de Grecia [Sofia of Greece]
 
I’m not a fan of the portraits. Both look heavily edited. The Queen seems very tall… and as someone above mentioned she doesn’t look very regal and dignified. Also the kings portrait is “shadowy”.

However, the portraits look better in frames on the wall than their digital versions
 
The come out nice, but Felipe's is a little too dark and the portrait looks not straight. like when you see a hanging frame and it's just an inch or two off.
The background looks like vines growing inside an abandon room.
but it def. grabs your attention
 
Prinsara said:
A model or an actress is not in the palace wearing the Crown diamonds and stuff from the wedding of the former king and queen and being portrayed as a pair with the king. Like any good portrait, it’s the symbolism, too.
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The photographer has taken as a reference the Spanish court portraits of the Baroque, and many elements have to be understood in that context. These paintings used to be full of details that referred to majesty and power but within a sobriety.
 
polyesco said:
The come out nice, but Felipe's is a little too dark and the portrait looks not straight. like when you see a hanging frame and it's just an inch or two off.
The background looks like vines growing inside an abandon room.
but it def. grabs your attention
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They looks almost AI. I do love Letizia's vintage gown and cape...they are stunning. Felipe looks great in his uniform. The composition of the portraits throws me off a bit.
 
Izzie said:
They looks almost AI. I do love Letizia's vintage gown and cape...they are stunning. Felipe looks great in his uniform. The composition of the portraits throws me off a bit.
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The King's choice of decorations is odd too. He shouldn't wear the sash of the Order of Carlos III with the collar of the same order. Instead he should have worn the collar of the order of the Golden Fleece with the sash of order of Carlos III and no necklace insignia, as he did on his wedding day, if I remember it correctly.

The Queen looks much younger on the portrait than her real age. Too much editing in my opinion.

Did the diamond rivière belong to Queen Ena?
 
An Ard Ri said:
Alfonso XIII as a Cadet by Manuel García Hispaleto
Housed at the Museo del Prado.
494px-Alfonso_XIII%2C_cadete%2C_de_Manuel_Garc%C3%ADa_Hispaleto.jpg
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Might be flattering, but he was a cute little boy. And then the Habsburg genes kicked in…
 
Yes , but worn on a shortway like Queen Sofia does.
The King wears his necklace of the Spanish Order of the Golden Fleece whose Grandmaster he is.
Royals who enly likes and respect each other . Happy Infantas . Stunning Pictures.
 
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My first thought was as well AI - its too dark and over-edited. But the setting is obviously a deliberate choice, hommage to the baroque age of painting.
The separated pictures looks like 2 different events, King in full regalia in dark dramatic background and Queen rather like a fashion model.
I am also irritated about Felipes background not being straight and the sharp cut at his feet.
 
People who know art history have found many references that explain these photographs.

"The idea that Queen Letizia is "portrayed as a Hollywood star" is wrong. As with the photograph of the king, it follows a very traditional pattern: the queen consort standing, wearing very luxurious jewellery and dress, and without a crown or obvious symbols of her royal status.

Technically, however, things worked the other way around. It was the stars of classical Hollywood who tried to portray themselves as kings and queens. The composition for Queen Letizia would only have been more traditional if she had had her hand on the back of her chair.

She also wears one of the most valuable "passing" jewels of the Spanish Royal Family, which are the "chatons". We have said in the past that they are worth more than many tiaras. This also follows a traditional pattern: valuable jewels, status symbols, and often significant.

We are talking about the "jewels of passing" here. As other royal consorts wore the "Peregrina" or the blue diamond of the Austrias, Queen Letizia wears the "chatons"."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1861688151489606129

Alfonso XII
https://twitter.com/x/status/1861453667485839566

Carlos V

https://twitter.com/x/status/1861431307622138234

Las Meninas
https://twitter.com/x/status/1861436087127736579

The tradition of Spanish portraiture was to portray the king and queen separately in pictures that are a pair... the photographs of Felipe and Letizia are conceived as a diptych, they must be together and placed in a certain position.

The portraits of Juan Carlos and Sofia for the Bank of Spain also repeat the same environment, and a darker and lighter light.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1861465979848458273
 
For us royal watchers we would know that the portraits are indeed of the Spanish King and Queen.
My personal thoughts are that the vast majority of non royal watchers would not guess that Letizia is a queen and would indeed mistake her as a Hollywood Star.

Had a gilded chair been used in the photo with Letizia or the Palace throne was used as the backdrop then perhaps it may emphasise that its royalty.
The backdrop room used in the photos looked a little too dark.
A miniature order could have been added digitally to Letizia's dress too.

We are looking at these photos as royal watchers but I can see how non royal watchers would confuse Letizia with a glamorous starlet.
 
The complaint that people would be confused with Letizia's photo is absurd and the usual nitpicking whenever Letizia does anything.

What about Felipe? He's just a random man in uniform. How would anyone know he's the King and not a random General?

What about the Bank of Spain's Portrait of Sofía? A random woman. No tiara or ermine in sight, just like her husband's portrait.

What about the historical portraits of the Austria royals posted by Lula?? How will people know who they are?? They could be any random noblewoman of their time for the uninitiated.

Unsurprisingly, the only one bothering posters here is Letizia's.
 
AnaC said:
What about the Bank of Spain's Portrait of Sofía? A random woman. No tiara or ermine in sight, just like her husband's portrait.
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It is really very difficult to find pictorial portraits in institutions or collections where Queen Sofia wears a tiara. She wears it in the official institutional photographs of the Royal House, but not in this type of portrait. Moreover, in the official photographs of her first years as queen she did not use it either.
 
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