Luis Ricardo Falero (Spanish painter) 1851 - 1896
Luis Ricardo Falero, Duke of Labranzano, was a Spanish painter. He specialized in female nudes and mythological and fantasy settings. Most of his paintings contained at least one female nude or topless nude. His most common medium was oil on canvas. Falero was born in Toledo and originally pursued a career in the Spanish Navy, but gave it up to his parent's bitter disappointment. He walked all the way to Paris, where he studied art, chemistry and mechanical engineering. The experiments that he had to conduct in the latter two were so dangerous, however, that he decided to focus on painting alone. After Paris, he studied in London, where he eventually settled. Falero had a particular interest in astronomy and incorporated celestial constellations into many of his works, such as "The Marriage of a Comet" and "Twin Stars". His interest and knowledge of astronomy also led him to illustrate the works of Camille Flammarion. In 1896, the year of his death, Maud Harvey sued Falero for paternity. The suit alleged that Falero seduced Harvey when she was 17 first serving as his housemaid, and then model. When he discovered she was pregnant, he dismissed her. She won the case and was awarded five shillings per week in support of their child. Falero died at University College Hospital, London, at the age of 45.
