Rafael Esteve

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Rafael Esteve Vilella (1 July 1772, Valencia - 1 October 1847, Madrid) was a Spanish engraver in the Romantic style.

Biography

He was born to a family of artists. His father was the sculptor,

In 1799, he was named the Court Engraver and executed portraits of the Royal Family, based on drawings made by his uncle, Agustín, after paintings by Francisco de Goya; for the Guía de Forasteros (a type of almanac). This enabled him to begin a friendship with Goya, who painted his portrait in 1815. Though not one of Goya's best-known works, it has considerable value. A replica of the work was the most expensive thing sold on the online retailer, Amazon, in 2022. It was valued at about $4 million.^[1]

Esteve Vilella and Goya's friendship lasted despite the latter's exile from Spain (1824-1828) in his last years. In a letter to his son dated January 17, 1828, Goya signs with the postscript "«To Don Rafael Esteve a thousand thing, that I often remember."^[2]

References

Sources

• Gallego Gallego, Antonio (1968). Historia del grabado en España. Madrid: Cátedra.
  ISBN 978-84-376-0209-7
• Zabala, Fernanda (2003). 125 valencianos en la Historia. Valencia (España): Carena Editors.
  ISBN 84-87398-64-2
• Catalá Gorgues, Miguel Ángel et al. (1986) El grabador Rafael Esteve. 1772-1847, exhibition catalog, Valencia, Publicaciones de la Fundación Caja de Pensiones
  ISBN 978-84-7664-049-4

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rafael Esteve.

• Digitalized works @ the Biblioteca Digital Hispánica of the Biblioteca Nacional de España