Juan Flores: azulejo works in Spain and connection to the Bacalhôa Palace in Portugal

Abstract

In 1550 Jan Floris de Vriendt (Antwerp 1520/24 - Talavera, Spain 1567) became the first painter of majolica to acquire the status of master in the painters’ Guild of Saint Luke in Antwerp. In his Het Schilder-Boeck, published in Haarlem in 1604, Karel van Mander writes: “Jan Floris was a potter of glazed ceramics more skilful and famous than any other in the Low Countries, and because of his talent he was called to Spain to work in the service of King Philip (…).” And yet, no work of his is known to survive in his native Antwerp. Although no reference to a Jan Floris has ever been found in Spain, several documents contemporary to his presumed presence in the country mention a certain Juan Flores, a Flemish master of majolica tiles in the service of King Philip II (1527-1598) until 1567, who can be identified as Jan Floris with a Castilianised name. This paper reviews Juan Flores’ career in Spain together with his known works there, as well as his presumed sojourn in Portugal where he may have worked for Brás [Afonso] de Albuquerque (1500-1581) producing majolica panels and patterned tiles for the decoration of the palace and gardens of Bacalhôa, near Lisbon. It also includes the results of an analytical characterization on samples collected in the Spanish panels and tiles attributed to Juan Flores, in order to determine and assess their morphologic features and chemical composition.