The Vicarage: A Glimpse into 18th-Century Spanish Life
The Vicarage
1. General Documentation
Title: The Vicarage
Artist: Mariano Fortuny (1838-1874)
Date: 1867-1870
Style: Realism
Technique: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 60 cm x 94 cm
Location: National Museum of Art of Catalonia, Barcelona
Subject: Genre scene depicting the signing of a marriage contract in a church office. Fortuny meticulously details the costumes, room decor, and ambiance.
2. Formal Analysis
Plastic Elements
Fortuny’s brushwork is characterized by freedom and preciousness. The vibrant colors, predominantly warm, overflow with richness and vitality. Light is evenly distributed across the canvas.
Composition
The perspective is structured around the groom signing the marriage contract, observed by the witness and vicar. On the same horizontal plane, behind the standing wife and family, are a figure collecting alms for purgatory and a seated man awaiting his turn. To the left, disconnected from the main action, a priest sits at his desk, attended by a gentleman.
Fortuny includes a second group closer to the viewer, representing common people, including a bullfighter and figures typical of Spanish imagery.
Two compositional elements stand out: the large foreground space, enhancing the perspective, and the placement of the hanging lamp and brazier, balancing the composition. The figures are arranged asymmetrically, concentrated on the right. The main action is slightly offset to the left.
The scene is dynamic, with the characters’ gestures and implied dialogue creating interconnected vignettes. The garden wall on the left limits the viewer’s perception of the vicarage’s size.
Vertical elements include the figures’ heights, chair backs, hanging lamp, large painting, and horizontal benches. To the right, humbler figures, possibly bullfighters, wait their turn. The yellow carpet at their feet contrasts with the brown floor, distinguishing the two groups, despite a lady’s presence on the right, suggesting a degree of condescension.
Style
Fortuny’s virtuosity is evident in the detailed costumes, wrought iron, and wall colors. His technique is precise, his themes anecdotal and jovial, devoid of social criticism. While categorized as a Realist, he is also considered a prominent figure in precious painting.
Fortuny’s work exhibits heightened chromaticity and intense light, seemingly emanating from a window to the left. His work achieved immense success in the 1870s, particularly in France. Critics linked his technique of light and color to Impressionism, but his use of chiaroscuro distinguished him. He admired Renoir, a young Catalan artist at the time.
Like Delacroix, Fortuny’s trip to North Africa to paint The Battle of Tetuan was a revelation. The dazzling light, vibrant colors, and picturesque themes captivated him.
In 1886, at the Prado, Fortuny copied and studied Venetian masters, El Greco, Velázquez, Ribera, and especially Goya, admiring his refined color sensibility, passion for light, and use of isolated color patches. Fortuny’s widespread acclaim inspired many artists, known as “fortunyistes,” in Spain (Tomás Moragas, Eduardo Zamacois), France (Henri Regnault), and Italy (Edoardo Dalbono, Francesco Paolo Michetti).
Fortuny’s fame is further evidenced by the numerous forgeries of his work produced during his lifetime in Rome.
3. Interpretation
Content and Significance
The Vicarage is a genre painting set in a typical 18th-century vicarage. It depicts a common social scene: the signing of a marriage contract. The theme likely originated from Fortuny’s visits to the sacristy of San Sebastian Church in Madrid, where he formalized his marriage to Cecilia Madrazo, daughter of painter Federico de Madrazo.
The Vicarage, and Fortuny’s oeuvre in general, reflects a shift away from Neoclassical grandeur and Romantic excess. This led to a focus on detailed technique and smaller canvases, exemplified by Meissonier’s popular tableautins, small cabinet-sized paintings.
The rise of the bourgeoisie as art patrons further contributed to this trend, favoring smaller, often domestic-themed works.
Fortuny’s dealer, Goupil, exhibited The Vicarage in Paris, selling it for 70,000 francs (over 140,000 pesetas), solidifying Fortuny’s European reputation.
Function
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Their destination was to be, in principle, the home of some wealthy person who wants to decorate a room with a work like this topic and courteous manners.