Spanish school; c. 1800-1810.

Spanish school; c. 1800-1810.
"Fernando VII".
Oil on panel.
Measurements: 11 x 8.5 cm; 16.5 x 12 cm (frame).
The portrait offers us the effigy of one of the most controversial Spanish monarchs, King Ferdinand VII, popularly known by the nicknames of "The Desired" and "The Felon". Recognized as a legitimate king by the Spanish people during the Napoleonic occupation, after being restored to the throne he revealed himself, however, as an absolutist sovereign, with a vengeful and treacherous personality, surrounded by a cohort of sycophants. The monarch was portrayed by painters as outstanding as Vicente López or Francisco de Goya and all these portraits show some peculiar features, which allow us to recognize the effigy in the painting we now present.
Aesthetically the work is close to the precepts of the painter and engraver, son of the baroque sculptor Alejandro Carnicero, he was also an excellent miniaturist. He entered the San Fernando Academy in Madrid at the age of ten, and accompanied his brother Isidro to Rome. He remained in the Italian capital for six years, perfecting his art and participating in various artistic competitions, being awarded prizes in several of them. On his return to Spain he completed his training at the Madrid Academy. During these years he began his collaboration with José del Castillo, with whom he worked from 1775 onwards on cartoons for tapestries for the Royal Factory, destined to decorate the rooms of the Princess of Asturias in the palace of El Pardo. As a draftsman he illustrated the editions of "Don Quixote" published by the Royal Spanish Academy in 1780 and 1782. In 1790 he made preparatory drawings for engravings, among them his outstanding series entitled "Tauromaquia". In 1796 and after previous failed attempts, he was appointed Pintor de Cámara de Carlos IV. Between this date and 1799, he made the illustrations for the book "El Real Picadero", commissioned by Manuel Godoy, which, however, he was unable to finish. He also collaborated with the "Colección de trajes", a series on the popular types in Spain, making between 1778 and 1784 seven illustrations with typical characters of the Balearic Islands.