Antonio Canovas del Castillo y Vallejo

Antonio Cánovas del Castillo and Vallejo (1862–1933), known artistically by the pseudonym Kaulak, was a multifaceted artist born in Madrid, Spain, who distinguished himself as a photographer, painter, and writer. Nephew of the influential politician of the same name, he began his journey in the visual arts as a disciple of the prestigious landscape painter. Carlos de Haes at the San Fernando Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid, Spainwhere he developed an aesthetic sensibility that he would later transfer to his lens. In addition to painting, he dedicated himself intensely to art criticism and literature, collaborating in various publications and founding specialized magazines such as Photography, which made him a central figure in the theorization and promotion of photography as an artistic discipline in his country.

His definitive consecration occurred in the field of portraiture, founding the celebrated "Kaulak" studio in Madrid in 1904. Spainwhich quickly became the preferred space for the royal family, the aristocracy, and the intellectual elite of the time. His style was characterized by technical rigor and classical elegance that elevated portrait photography to a level of great sophistication, fusing pictorial tradition with new technological possibilities. As a founding member of the Photographic Society of Madrid, in Spain[He] played a fundamental role in the visual modernization of early 20th-century society, leaving behind an invaluable documentary and artistic legacy that is now preserved in leading institutions such as the National Library of [Brazil]. Spain and the Municipal Museum of Madrid.