La Suite Subastas
Lot 160
Attributed to Vicente Escobar (Havana, Cuba, 1762–1834)Portrait of the Military Officer José Pascual de Zayas y Chacón76 x 54 cmThe frame of the painting is typical of those commonly used in 19th-century Cuba.Our painting is comparable to two works, the first is a portrait of the same José Pascual de Zayas that is in the Museum of Fine Arts of Cuba painted by Vicente López and the second is a portrait of the Spanish sailor Juan José Ruiz de Apocada y Elizados painted by Vicente Escobar to whom we logically attribute our painting.In both paintings, the portrayed is in the same scenography: he is located next to a column and next to a pedestal on which rests a marble bust, the same as in our work.This portrait presents José Pascual de Zayas y Chacón adorned with numerous medals awarded by King Ferdinand VII for his participation in various battles during the Peninsular War. He is portrayed holding a command baton, symbolizing his military authority.The medals have been identified in rows, from left to right:Row 1:Cross of the Royal and Military Order of San Hermenegildo, established by Ferdinand VII in 1814 at the end of the Peninsular War.Cross of Distinction of the North, Royal Order of March 23, 1809.Cross of Distinction for the First, Second, and Third Armies, Royal Circular of March 31, 1815.Cross of Distinction of the First Army, Circular of January 26, 1817 (Campaigns of 1813 and 1814).Row 2:Cross of Distinction for the Battle of Talavera, Royal Order of December 8, 1810.Cross of Distinction to the Army of Extremadura (Alburquerque), Circular of June 5, 1815.Possibly the Cross of Distinction of the First Army for the 1811 campaign.Row 3:Plaque of the Royal and Military Order of San Hermenegildo, established by Ferdinand VII in 1814.On his left sleeve, he wears the Shield of Distinction for Medellín, Royal Decree of April 1, 1809.Vicente Escobar was a prominent Cuban painter, born in 1762 into a family of officers of the Pardos y Morenos Regiment. Though registered as black at birth, he took advantage of the "Real Cédula de Gracias al Sacar" a Royal Decree of Graces that allowed certain privileges to those who paid for it, and reportedly died as a legally recognized white man. A self-taught artist, his early inspiration came from devotional images inherited from his maternal great-grandmother.In the 1780s, Escobar traveled to Spain, and in 1784 he studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando in Madrid, where he was a pupil of Mariano Salvador Maella and became acquainted with the works of Goya. In 1827, he was appointed Pintor de Cámara (Court Painter) by Ferdinand VII. At the peak of his success, Escobar died during a cholera epidemic.José Pascual de Zayas y Chacón was born in Havana on June 5, 1772. He pursued a military career in Spain, stemming from his noble lineage and influential connections with the O’Reilly family. He joined the army at fifteen and was named sub-lieutenant. During the War of the Pyrenees (War of the Convention), he distinguished himself and was briefly taken prisoner, and later freed in 1794. In 1800, he took part in the defense of Ferrol against the British. For his role in the Battle of Brione in 1801, he was promoted to Captain of Grenadiers. In 1807, he served as lieutenant to O’Reilly in Etruria. Though he did not partake in the Denmark campaign due to bureaucratic delays, he was in Spain when the Peninsular War broke out. He died in Chiclana on October 27, 1827, while awaiting a ship to return to the Americas.Bibliography:https://historia-hispanica.rah.es/biografias/45774-jose-pascual-de-zayas-chacon