Moody Romantics: A Federico Beltran-Masses Portrait in Flowers

Federico Beltran-Masses was a Spanish painter who worked predominately during the 1920’s and 1930’s. He specialised in gothic portraiture, many of which featured exotic socialites within dark, atmospheric settings. Born in Cuba, Beltran-Masses traveled far and wide throughout his career, becoming acquainted with a variety of European and American debutantes and receiving vast praise for his work, which was featured in a number of prestigious exhibitions since his conception as an artist. His infatuation with the human subject, particularly the female, was perhaps born from an entrancement with the mysterious riches that penetrated the esoteric circles of the socialites he encountered. His portrait of marquise, Luisa Casati, for example, situates her in a gloomy dreamscape lying sensually with a crystal ball in her palm. In Aux Êcoutes, Beltran-Masses tells the story of how Casati came to his door in the middle of the night, requesting to be painted by him after seeing one of his portraits. He described his subject as having, “arms in a web of black lace, her mouth blood-red, her eyes enlarged with kohl” (Federico Beltrán-Masses in Aux Êcoutes, 5th of March, 1922).

Beltran-Masses saturates his paintings with a signature ultramarine wash, giving them a collectively nocturnal feel. Working mostly in oil paints, he achieves smooth contrasts and regal colour palettes which embody the wealthy class of his subjects. The nude skin of his women shine against these hues, giving them a ghostly appearance as if he has only caught them in a momentary apparition. They are both romantic and sinister, mysterious and seductive. I used the painting, La Maja Maldita (The Wicked Maja), as my inspiration for this arrangement. The painting depicts profound Spanish dancer, Carmen Tortóla Valencia, in a reclining position on a bed of sheets and coverings, wearing a sheer lace dress and headscarf, and staring almost hauntingly out of the frame.

I wanted to capture dark romance through regal floral shades, rich varying textures and pillowy, sweeping shapes. I focused on employing blacks and deep greys alongside touches of pale yellow and dark reds to imitate the body, lips, curtain and bedding of the Maja. I also added touches of gold and wild branches of greenery to add a layer of magic and whimsicality to the arrangement. I used hanging Amaranthus to evoke the reclining, linear silhouette of his subject, and a detailed juniper pot to bring in the undertones of the colours that feature in the painting. The pink Peonies were the last things that I added to the arrangement, and really added an element of drama and femininity to the arrangement that completed the style.

I used a combination of dried and fresh flowers for this arrangement. All the black pieces had been dried, and offered something unique to work with that I had never used before. Some of the Roses, the greenery and the Peonies were fresh. I loved pairing something living with something dead, especially for an arrangement like this where it was my goal to emulate an ephemeral, ghoulish woman, and an eclectic presence of imperial Spanish beauty.