FRANCISCO BAYEU (Zaragoza, 1734 – Madrid, 1795). "The Call of Isaiah". Oil on canvas. Relined.

FRANCISCO BAYEU (Zaragoza, 1734 - Madrid, 1795).
"The Vocation of Isaiah".
Oil on canvas. Re-drawn.
It presents restorations.
Size: 35 x 23 cm; 44,5 x 32,5 cm (frame).
The Prado Museum in Madrid preserves the sketch of the vocation of Isaiah made by Bayeu, for the frescoes of the Dome of the Collegiate Church of La Granja de San Ildefonso in Segovia, which are currently lost. This piece reproduces an image similar to the sketch in the museum's collection, with the figure of God enthroned in the upper area, and Isaiah with the angel in the lower area. It is true that in this case the ember held by the angel is not visible, but only the gesture of the body.
Francisco Bayeu began his training in his native Saragossa, attending the workshop of Juan Andrés Merklein, a painter of Bohemian origin, and the drawing classes of José Luzán Martà nez. In 1756 he was awarded the Extraordinary Prize at the San Fernando Academy, which earned him a scholarship in 1758 to study for two years at the San Fernando Academy in Madrid. However, Bayeu left the academy only two months later because of his disagreements with one of the professors, Antonio González Velázquez. He then returned to Saragossa and his financial situation became complicated, as the death of his parents forced him to take charge of his family. He then began his career as a painter, carrying out commissions for churches and convents in the city. Around this time, in 1759, he married Sebastiana Merklein, the daughter of his master. During these years he developed a language that was still youthful and influenced by Lucas Jordán and Corrado Giaquinto. However, in 1762 Anton Raphael Mengs, the leading court painter, visited Saragossa and asked him to work with him on the decoration of the new Royal Palace. Thanks to Mengs's protection, Bayeu carried out various decorative commissions for the Royal Sites, thus establishing himself as one of the most outstanding painters of the day. These early works for the court included the fresco decoration of the vaults in the dining room of the queen's bedroom ("The Surrender of Granada") and the antechamber of the Princes of Asturias ("The Fall of the Giants"). His Baroque training is still evident in these works, but elements of his mature language can already be glimpsed, such as the elegance of the positions, the meticulousness, the neoclassical lighting effects and the perfect anatomical study. By the 1760s his neoclassical aesthetic was fully formed, marked by a clean, precise drawing and a palette that played with the contrast of reds and yellows over a tonality based on blues and greys, as can be seen in "Hercules on Olympus" (conversation room of the Princes of Asturias in the Royal Palace), "Apollo remunerating the Arts" (El Pardo) or "Providence presiding over the virtues and faculties of man" (room next to the gala dining room of the Royal Palace). Within his religious production of these years, the eleven fresco scenes illustrating the lives and miracles of Toledo saints in Toledo cathedral, works that were already completely indebted to Mengs, are particularly noteworthy. After the latter's departure for Rome in 1777, the Aragonese painter took on all the duties left by Mengs as his first painter, although he did not obtain this appointment. These tasks included designing cartoons for the Royal Tapestry Factory, where he supervised the work of Goya, his brother-in-law from 1773. In 1785 he was commissioned by Charles III to restore the paintings in the royal collections. In 1786 he was appointed director of the San Fernando Academy. Influenced by the painting of Corrado Giaquinto and González Vázquez, Bayeu's first period was one of the most outstanding exponents of Spanish late Baroque painting. He later became the most faithful follower of Mengs, assimilating neoclassical principles.