Pareja, Juan de (1606c.-1670) - The Calling of St. Matthew (Prado Museum, Madrid, Spain)
Oil on canvas; 225 x 325 cm.
The son of Moorish indentured servants (in other words, slaves), Juan de Pareja's was apparently left to Diego Velázquez in a will, as property. He acted as a personal assistant to Velázquez, and in the studio he ground pigments and stretched canvases.
Velázquez would never let the slave even pick up a paintbrush, but the Moor watched and learned in the master's studio, and practiced drawing in secret.
According to legend, on an occasion when Velázquez's patron, the king of Spain, was due to visit, Pareja placed one of his own paintings where it would be seen by him. When the king came across it, Pareja threw himself at the king's feet, told him how he had learned to paint without his master's knowledge, and begged him to intercede on his behalf. The king voiced the opinion that "any man who has this skill cannot be a slave," at which point Velázquez had little option but to grant Pareja his freedom.
Another version of events has Pareja being given the gift of his freedom in return for his friendship and support following the death of Velázquez's wife.
In any case, Juan de Pareja was granted his freedom in 1654 and stayed on in Velázquez's studio, painting openly and quickly becoming an artist of considerable talent.
www.flickr.com/photos/32357038@N08/7980445022/
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_de_Pareja
Pareja, Juan de (1606c.-1670) - The Calling of St. Matthew (Prado Museum, Madrid, Spain)
Oil on canvas; 225 x 325 cm.
The son of Moorish indentured servants (in other words, slaves), Juan de Pareja's was apparently left to Diego Velázquez in a will, as property. He acted as a personal assistant to Velázquez, and in the studio he ground pigments and stretched canvases.
Velázquez would never let the slave even pick up a paintbrush, but the Moor watched and learned in the master's studio, and practiced drawing in secret.
According to legend, on an occasion when Velázquez's patron, the king of Spain, was due to visit, Pareja placed one of his own paintings where it would be seen by him. When the king came across it, Pareja threw himself at the king's feet, told him how he had learned to paint without his master's knowledge, and begged him to intercede on his behalf. The king voiced the opinion that "any man who has this skill cannot be a slave," at which point Velázquez had little option but to grant Pareja his freedom.
Another version of events has Pareja being given the gift of his freedom in return for his friendship and support following the death of Velázquez's wife.
In any case, Juan de Pareja was granted his freedom in 1654 and stayed on in Velázquez's studio, painting openly and quickly becoming an artist of considerable talent.
www.flickr.com/photos/32357038@N08/7980445022/
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_de_Pareja