The Facts
On September 23, 2026, the J. Paul Getty Museum announced the acquisition of "Portrait of the Count-Duke of Olivares" (ca. 1626) by Spanish artist Diego Velázquez (1599–1660). The painting, rediscovered after being considered lost, depicts Gaspar de Guzmán y Pimentel, the powerful prime minister to King Philip IV. Velázquez likely painted the bust-length portrait as a diplomatic gift for Cardinal Francesco Barberini during his 1626 embassy to Madrid. The work was previously known only through a Paulus Pontius engraving designed by Peter Paul Rubens, and remained in Italy until it was acquired by a private collector in 2025 and subsequently sold to the Getty. It is the first painting by Velázquez to enter the Getty’s collection and the first by the artist to reside on the West Coast of the United States.
The Signal
This acquisition marks a major addition to the Getty’s 17th-century European painting holdings and strengthens its growing Spanish paintings collection. The portrait will go on view at the Getty Center this fall before traveling to the Detroit Institute of Arts, where it will be featured in the exhibition "Velázquez & Olivares: Early Years at Court" from January 24 to July 25, 2027. The rediscovery, documented by DIA director Salvador Salort-Pons, underscores Velázquez’s innovative approach to state portraiture. For collectors and institutions, the painting enriches the market presence of works by an artist with only about 120 known surviving paintings, most concentrated at the Museo del Prado.
- Artists: Diego Velázquez
- People: Timothy Potts, Davide Gasparrotto, Salvador Salort-Pons
- Museums: J. Paul Getty Museum, Detroit Institute of Arts
- Locations: Los Angeles, Detroit
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