Dressing Queen Mariana of Austria
- DATE:
- TIME:
- 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm
- SPEAKER:
- Amanda Wunder, Professor of History and Art History, City University of New York (Lehman College and the Graduate Center)
Mariana of Austria wears a stunning black-and-silver dress in Velázquez’s iconic portrait. Did dresses like this really exist? If so, how were they made? And what was it like to wear them? In this lecture, the author of Spanish Fashion in the Age of Velázquez explores the materials and techniques that went into making courtly dresses in 17th-century Spain and reveals the hidden undergarments that created the queen’s unnatural silhouette. Lifting the curtain from the portrait, Amanda Wunder introduces the skilled court artisans who worked behind the scenes to dress the Spanish queen and brings to life the flesh-and-blood woman who lived behind the masklike makeup and heavy wig in Velázquez’s famous painting.
EVENT DETAILS
- Fee:
- Free with museum admission.
- Details:
- Doors open 30 minutes before program. Advance ticket-holders may check in at the Membership Desk between 12:00 p.m. and 4:45 p.m. to receive a sticker for their seat (seating is not assigned). Everyone must be seated no later than 4:50 p.m. Guests who are not in their seat by 4:50 p.m. may forfeit their ticket.
- Location:
- Theater
Related Events
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Mariana: Velázquez’s Portrait of a Queen
Enjoy a tour of Diego Velázquez’s magnificent portrait Queen Mariana of Austria, on loan from the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid. View Velázquez’s work in proximity to those by other 17th-century Spanish painters such as Francisco de Zurbarán and Jusepe de Ribera, as well as artists whose works were collected by the Habsburg court, including Nicolas Poussin and Peter Paul Rubens. MORE INFO
Films & Performances:
Portrait of Mariana of Austria
Approached as a narrative, Portrait of Mariana of Austria for viola and harp encapsulates the life of Mariana through four introspective vignettes: Childhood, Marriage, Political Influence and Retirement. This piece was written by the Los Angeles–based Spanish composer Martí Noguer especially for the Museum’s presentation of Velázquez’s painting. The performance features two musicians from Spain: violist Albert Coronado Daza, a 2024 member of the Spanish Young Music Talents program, and harpist Cristina Montes Mateo, principal harpist for the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Co-presented with SPAIN Arts & Culture, the Cultural Office of the Embassy of Spain. MORE INFO