When the great Velázquez was painting his masterpieces atthe Spanish court in the seventeenth century, his colors wereexpertly mixed and his canvases carefully prepared by his slave,Juan de Pareja. In a vibrant novel which depicts both the beautyand the cruelty of the time and place, Elizabeth Borton de Trevi?otells the story of Juan, who was born a slave and died anaccomplished and respected artist. Upon the death of his indulgent mistressin Seville, Juan de Pareja was uprooted from the only home he hadknown and placed in the charge of a vicious gypsy muleteer to besent north to his mistress’s nephew and heir, Diego Velázquez, whorecognized at once the intelligence and gentle breeding which wereto make Juan his indispensable assistant and companion—and hislifelong friend. Through Juan’s eyes the reader seesVelázquez’s delightful family, his working habits and the characterof the man, his relations with the shy yet devoted King Philip IVand with his fellow painters, Rubens and Murillo, the climate andcustoms of Spanish court life. When Velázquez discovers that he andJuan share a love for the art which is his very life, the painterproves his friendship in the most incredible fashion, for in thosedays it was forbidden by law for slaves to learn or practice thearts. Through the hardships of voyages to Italy, through theillnesses of Velázquez, Juan de Pareja loyally serves until thedeath of the painter in 1660.
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