Wikipedia:Featured picture candidates/Coronation of the Virgin (Velázquez)

Coronation of the Virgin (Velázquez)
Voting period ends on 19 Mar 2014  at 08:14:41 (UTC)
 * Reason:High quality scan of a notable painting. I don't think we've had any Velazquez up in a while.
 * Articles in which this image appears:Coronation of the Virgin (Velázquez) +5
 * FP category for this image:Featured pictures/Artwork/Paintings
 * Creator:Diego Velázquez


 * Support as nominator -- — Crisco 1492 (talk) 08:14, 9 March 2014 (UTC)
 * Support Nice choice. Brandmeistertalk  10:56, 9 March 2014 (UTC)
 * Comment: Great candidate, but what does "This image is "stretched vertically", compared to the original." mean? J Milburn (talk) 19:46, 9 March 2014 (UTC)
 * That appears to have been related to an older version. I've removed the note and updated the source. — Crisco 1492 (talk) 00:04, 10 March 2014 (UTC)


 * Support Would prefer a little more resolution, but otherwise great. Adam Cuerden (talk) 17:20, 14 March 2014 (UTC)
 * Support. J Milburn (talk) 10:52, 15 March 2014 (UTC)
 * Support -- Deserves FP upgradation. Herald  15:33, 16 March 2014 (UTC)
 * Oppose Looking at the file history and at other versions online, I'm really not sold on the current colors. I think that the previous versions are clearly too bright, but that this took it too far in the opposite direction. I've never seen the actual work, but looking at the other images online, there is a vibrancy in the yellows, especially around the bird, that is completely lost here.  S ven M anguard   Wha?  15:39, 16 March 2014 (UTC)
 * Since the current version comes directly from the Prado Museum, I think other versions may be digitally enhanced (as it happens to other digitized paintings). Perhaps the original painting just faded a bit, lighting conditions may also come into play. Brandmeistertalk  19:30, 16 March 2014 (UTC)
 * Support - The colours are correct. Because Velazquez was primarily a portrait painter, he didn't have much use for bright yellows. (The Spanish court wore black, grey satin, dark blue velvet.  The king had a red satin suit with silver embroidery, but no-one else would have dared.) So Velazquez has used paint of the pale yellow colour generically known as "Naples Yellow" which is a very stable colour that is opaque and doesn't fade. The other colours such as the grey background (which is a mix of blue, brown and white), the contrast of the violet robes against the pinkish madder robes, the tone of the blue of the Virgin's garment are all correct.
 * The reasons why most prints generally have the colours wrong are probably partly a matter of the expectation of the printers that haloes will be bright yellow. If Titian had done this, there would be a golden glow. Tintoretto on the other hand, painted God surrounded by iridescent light, very similar to what we are seeing here.
 * The other factor is that paintings such as this are usually covered with layers of varnish, candle-smoke and dirt. This is a very clean painting. Amandajm (talk) 05:50, 17 March 2014 (UTC)

--Armbrust The Homunculus 08:14, 19 March 2014 (UTC)