11735

Queen Victoria Eugenia of Spain, née Princess Victoria Eugénie Julia Ena of Battenberg 1927

Half length, head turned in three-quarter profile to the right, wearing a plain sleeveless black gown, a black lace mantilla, a black lace and chiffon stole over her shoulders and arms, the Order of Queen María Luisa on a purple and white ribbon pinned to her dress, and emerald drop earrings, holding a fan in her right hand

Oil on canvas, 92 x 66 cm (36 ¼  x 26 in.)

Sitters’ Book II, f. 53: Victoria Eugenia 

Studio Inventory, p. 11 (61): Painted in Madrid. First Study for large picture / A further study of the Queen of Spain is on the back of this canvas

Private Collection

De László spent seven weeks in the spring of 1927 staying at the Royal Palace in Madrid, where he completed thirteen portraits of King Alfonso XIII, his consort Queen Victoria Eugenia, and their children. In this preparatory oil sketch the Queen is depicted in traditional formal dress, worn for official ceremonies and religious events. It references Francisco Goya’s portrait of Doña Isabel de Porcel, which de László would have seen, having been acquired by the  National Gallery, London, in 1896. The finished portrait [12398], one of six of the sitter, is now in the collection of the Prado Museum, Madrid. The others are [7933] [7936] [7939] [11168].

De László often formed close friendships with his sitters and recalled his time in Madrid fondly: “The Queen spent hours and hours in my studio and discussed art with the competence of an aesthete. Life in the Palace is infinitely pleasant and harmonious. I worked for five to six hours a day, and, before I left, at the request of the Royal Family, I organised an exhibition of the twenty-three paintings I made during the trip, an exhibition at the Palacio de Biblioteca y Museos. The Queen and Queen Mother came personally to open the private view.”

Princess Victoria Eugenia ‘Ena’ (1887-1969) was the youngest granddaughter of Queen Victoria, the only daughter of Prince Henry of Battenberg and his wife, Princess Beatrice. She married King Alfonso XIII in 1906. Their great-grandson is King Felipe VI of Spain.

For biographical notes on the sitter, see [7933].

PROVENANCE:

In the possession of the artist on his death;

Acquired by the Spanish Royal family;

By descent;

Sold Christie’s, South Kensington, 30 April 2015;

Philip Mould & Company

LITERATURE

•Hart-Davis, Duff, in collaboration with Caroline Corbeau-Parsons, De László: His Life and Art, Yale University Press, 2010, p. 207

KF 2015