Martín Tovar y Tovar (10 February 1827 – 17 December 1902) was a Venezuelan painter, best known for his portraits and historical scenes.

Biography

Tovar was born and died in Caracas. His father, Antonio María Tovar (1791–1860), was a former official of the Spanish government who had retired after receiving a serious bullet wound during the

War of Independence This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence. List See also * Lists of active separatist movements * List of civil wars * List o ...

. His mother, Damiana Tovar Liendo (c.1805–1844), was from Caracas. The family had been living in exile in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

, but returned to Venezuela immediately before Tovar's birth.Biography
@ Wikihistoria del Arte Venezolano. He received his first lessons from

Celestino Martínez Celestino Martínez Sánchez (19 May 1820, Caracas - 23 December 1885, Caracas) was a Venezuelan painter, lithographer, illustrator and photographer. He also spent part of his career working in Colombia. Biography His father, Juan José Dionis ...

who, at the age of nineteen, had just become an instructor at the "Academia de Dibujo" (Drawing Academy). Later, Tovar studied at the Academy itself with Antonio José Carranza and at the "Colegio de La Paz" with Carmelo Fernández. In 1844, he joined with Fernández and two other artists to acquire a

lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

workshop owned by German emigrants.Brief biography
@ MCN Biografías. Firma del acta de independencia de Venezuela

In 1850, he travelled to Spain and enrolled at the

Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando The Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (RABASF; ), located on the Calle de Alcalá in the heart of Madrid, currently functions as a museum and gallery. A public law corporation, it is integrated together with other Spanish royal acade ...

in Madrid. There, he studied with

José de Madrazo José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacu ...

and his son, Federico de Madrazo, among others.Brief biography
@ Efemérides Venezolanos. In 1851, he opened a shop called "Fotografía Artística de Martín Tovar y Tovar", becoming one of his country's pioneer photographers. In 1852, he moved to Paris and found a position in the workshop of

Léon Cogniet Léon Cogniet (29 August 1794 – 20 November 1880) was a French history and portrait painter. He is probably best remembered as a teacher, with more than one hundred notable students. Biography He was born in Paris. His father was a painter ...

. Three years later, he returned to Venezuela, but stayed for only a year before going back to Paris to copy paintings by the major artists, with a view towards using them to establish a national museum in Caracas. His proposal was accepted, but a lack of funds kept it from being realized. He continued to focus on portraits, however, and participated in several exhibitions, including the

International Exposition (1867) The International Exposition of 1867 (french: Exposition universelle 'art et d'industriede 1867), was the second world's fair to be held in Paris, from 1 April to 3 November 1867. A number of nations were represented at the fair. Following a dec ...

in Paris. Two years later, he was appointed Director of the "Academia de Bellas Artes" in Caracas. In 1872, he exhibited at the "Primera Exposición Anual de Bellas Artes Venezolanas", organized by the explorers James Mudie Spence (1836–1878)Biography of Spence
@ Pioneros en Venezuela. and

Anton Goering Christian Anton Goering (18 September 1836, Thonhausen - 7 December 1905, Leipzig) was a German naturalist, painter and graphic artist who spent several years in Venezuela. Biography Study and travels He learned taxidermy from his father, who ...

(who was also a painter). In 1873, he received what would be his largest commission; painting 30 portraits of heroes from the War of Independence and other public figures for the "Salón Elíptico" at the

Palacio Federal Legislativo The Palacio Federal Legislativo (English: Federal Legislative Palace), also known as the Capitolio, is a historic building in Caracas, Venezuela which houses both the National Assembly and the National Constituent Assembly. Located southeast of th ...

, a project that would occupy him for two years. In 1881, he received another commission from President

Antonio Guzmán Blanco Antonio José Ramón de La Trinidad y María Guzmán Blanco (28 February 1829 – 28 July 1899) was a Venezuelan military leader, statesman, diplomat and politician. He was the president of Venezuela for three separate terms, from 1870 until ...

; a large canvas depicting the signing of the

Venezuelan Declaration of Independence The Venezuelan Declaration of Independence () is a statement adopted by a congress of Venezuelan provinces on July 5, 1811, through which Venezuelans made the decision to separate from the Spanish Crown in order to establish a new nation based o ...

, also for the "Salón Elíptico". The work was presented at the "Exposición Nacional de Venezuela" in 1883 and was awarded a gold medal. This resulted in further commissions to portray the battles of Carabobo, Boyacá, Junín and

Ayacucho Ayacucho (, qu, Ayak'uchu) is the capital city of Ayacucho Region and of Huamanga Province, Ayacucho Region, Peru. During the Inca Empire and Viceroyalty of Peru periods the city was known by the name of Huamanga (Quechua: Wamanga), and it c ...

. After researching and sketching the battle sites, he set up a workshop in Paris, which he maintained from 1887 to the late 1890s, commuting between there and Caracas and doing more portraits as well as the battle scenes. He had finished only three of the battles when he died in 1902. The ''Battle of Ayucucho'' was completed by Antonio Herrera Toro, using Tovar's studies.

Selected portraits

File:Gregorio MacGregor.jpg, Gregor MacGregor File:Martin Tovar y Tovar 20.JPG,

File:Martin Tovar y Tovar 03.jpg, Guzmán's mother, Carlota File:Martin Tovar y Tovar 23.JPG, Juan Crisóstomo Falcón File:Francisco de Miranda by Tovar y Tovar.jpg, Francisco de Miranda

References

External links

Escuela de Artes Plásticas "Martín Tovar y Tovar"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tovar Y Tovar, Martin 1827 births 1902 deaths People from Caracas Portrait painters Military art 19th-century Venezuelan painters 19th-century male artists Burials at the National Pantheon of Venezuela 20th-century Venezuelan painters 20th-century Venezuelan male artists Male painters Death in Caracas

Biography

Selected portraits

References

Further reading

External links