(Naples, 1716-Madrid, 1780) was a Spanish painter. Although he received little acclaim during his lifetime and died in poverty, Melendez is recognized today as the greatest Spanish still-life painter of the 18th century. His mastery of composition and light, and his remarkable ability to convey the volume and texture of individual objects enabled him to transform the most mundane of kitchen fare into powerful images. Luis Egidio Melendez de Rivera Durazo y Santo Padre was born in Naples in 1716. His father, Francisco Melendez de Rivera Diaz (1682- after 1758), was a miniaturist painter from Oviedo who had moved to Madrid with his older brother, the portrait painter Miguel Jacinto Melendez (1679-1734) in pursuit of artistic instruction. Whereas Miguel remained in Madrid to study and became a painter in the court of Philip V, Francisco left for Italy in 1699 to seek greater artistic exposure. Francisco took a special interest in visiting the Italian academies and settled in Naples where he married Maria Josefa Durazo y Santo Padre Barrille.Luis was a year old when his father, who had been a soldier in a Spanish garrison and lived abroad for almost two decades, returned to Madrid with the family. Luis Egidio, his brother Jose Agusten, and Ana, one of his sisters, began their careers under the tutelage of their father, who was appointed the King's Painter of Miniatures in 1725.After several years, in his words: painting royal portraits in jewels and bracelets to serve as gifts for envoys and ambassadors, he entered the workshop of Louis Michel van Loo (1707-1771), a Frenchman who had been made royal painter of Philip V of Spain. Between 1737 to 1742, Melendez worked as a part of a team of artist dedicated to copying van Loo's prototypes of royal portraits for the domestic and overseas market, but at least he had a foothold in the palace. He had his artistic sights on a distinguished career as a court painter.  Related Paintings of Luis Egidio Melendez :. | Still Life with Oranges | Still Life with Fruit and Cheese | Detail of Self-portrait Holding an Academic Study | Detail of Self-portrait Holding an Academic Study. | Still Life With Figs |
Related Artists:
Clement Drew
1806-1889
John F.Francis
American Painter, 1808-1886 American painter. Beginning as an itinerant portrait painter in rural Pennsylvania, he produced works including flattering, colourful portraits of his sisters in the style of Thomas Sully, often incorporating small still-life details. He abandoned portraiture after 1850 to concentrate exclusively on still-life subjects in the tradition of the PEALE family.
hersent
(March 10, 1777 C October 2, 1860) was a French painter. Portrait of Sophie Crouzet, by Louis HersentBorn in Paris, he became a pupil of David, and obtained the Prix de Rome in 1797. In the Salon of 1802 appeared his "Metamorphosis of Narcissus," and he continued to exhibit with rare interruptions up to 1831. His most considerable works under the empire were "Achilles parting from Brisis," and "Atala dying in the arms of Chactas" (both engraved in Landon's Annales du Musee);