Joaquín Sorolla (born in Valencia 1863 - died in Cercedilla 1923) is one of the most successful Spanish painters ever. He was a genius in capturing the essence of the scene he was painting. In Joaquín Sorolla Portraits 3 1911 -1920 Sorolla paints still paints many important portraits although in the course of preparing for his grand masterpiece "The Vision of Spain", which hangs in the Hispanic Society of America, he did not have the same amount of time available. Sorolla also indulged in painting gardens as relaxation from the gigantic "The Vision of Spain" project. The portraits provide a deep and interesting look into both American and Spanish society in this period. In his early years Sorolla often showed social realism, in his culmination period showed the increasingly wealthy sitters that came to him and in his final period he is a celebrated portraitist of rich Americans and a cultural and political elite in Spain. Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida (born 27 February 1863 in Valencia - died 10 August 1923 in Cercedilla, Madrid) was a Spanish painter. Sorolla excelled in the painting of portraits, landscapes and monumental works of social and historical themes. His most typical works are characterized by a dexterous representation of the people and landscape under the bright sunlight of his native land and sunlit water. Sorolla was the eldest child born to a tradesman, also named Joaquin Sorolla, and his wife, Concepción Bastida. His sister, Concha, was born a year later. In August 1865, both children were orphaned when their parents died, possibly from cholera. They were then cared for by their maternal aunt and uncle, a locksmith. He received his initial art education at the age of 9 in his native town, and then under a succession of teachers including Cayetano Capuz and Salustiano Asenjo. At the age of eighteen he traveled to Madrid, vigorously studying master paintings in the Museo del Prado. After completing his military service, Sorolla, at age twenty-two, obtained a grant which enabled a four-year term to study painting in Rome, Italy, where he was welcomed by and found stability in the example of Francisco Pradilla, the director of the Spanish Academy in Rome. A long sojourn to Paris in 1885 provided his first exposure to modern painting; of special influence were exhibitions of Jules Bastien-Lepage and Adolf von Menzel. Back in Rome he studied with José Benlliure, Emilio Sala and Jose Vellegas Cordero.