Portret van schilder Antonio Ponz 1793

This is a portrait of the painter Antonio Ponz by Manuel Salvador Carmona made with etching. Carmona, born in Spain, became a court painter, a position that granted him access to elite circles, affording him both status and the opportunity to depict prominent figures. Ponz, also a painter, was an art critic and secretary of the Academia de San Fernando. This portrait, therefore, operates within a network of artistic and intellectual exchange. The etching medium itself speaks to the Enlightenment era's emphasis on reason, precision, and the dissemination of knowledge. This portrait served as a tool for circulating Ponz's image and ideas among the artistic community. The decision to portray Ponz with the tools of his trade—the palette and brushes displayed beneath his name—further emphasizes his identity as an artist and intellectual. This image invites us to consider the ways in which artists like Carmona and Ponz navigated the social and political landscape of their time, using their art to shape cultural discourse.