The Forge of Vulcan, c.1630
Diego Rodriguez de Silva Velazquez (1599-1660)

Velazquez - The Forge of Vulcan

In this canvas of his early maturity, Velazquez still shows his attraction to the compositions and smooth constructions of domestic interiors that have their origin in Caravaggio.

To this tradition also belongs the composition with its diagonal counterpoised planes and directional thrusts forward and to the background, all tied together in a solid framework. The axis of the picture is central, with oblique ramifications and displacements in all directions, converging and diverging at the same time, arresting the internal structure at the extremity of connection and equilibrium.

The grace and bearing of the anatomically precise nudes, the easy freedom of the gestures, the varying reactions of the personages in the circuit of the mimed dialogue, the changing colours under the daylight and sunny illumination - all show the artist's sensitivity to the style of Rubens, whom he had met in Madrid in 1628. Velazquez, however, does not diverge from his own temperament of earthy fullness and community with the real world; he rejects emotional transports and bombast of any sort. Even the presence of Apollo, crowned with laurel, his head radiating light, does not alter the familiar character of a scene in a forge.