Mercury and Argus
Diego Velázquez·1659
Historical Context
Mercury and Argus, at the Prado, was painted around 1659 and depicts the myth of Mercury lulling the hundred-eyed guardian Argus to sleep before killing him. One of Velazquez's last paintings, the work was executed for the Hall of Mirrors in the Alcazar of Madrid, destroyed by fire in 1734. Velázquez's uncompromising naturalism and psychological penetration, combined with his revolutionary loose handling of paint in his late work, made him one of the most admired painters in history, his technique anticipating Impressionism and influencing Manet, Sargent, and countless others.
Technical Analysis
The painting's loose, vaporous brushwork represents the extreme point of Velazquez's stylistic evolution — forms dissolve into atmosphere, with the boundary between figure and background becoming almost indistinguishable. The restricted palette of browns, grays, and muted blues creates a dreamlike atmosphere.
