La Perla de Triana

Artist John Phillip (Aberdeen, Scotland, 1817 - 1867)

Date1852

Mediumoil on canvas

ClassificationsPaintings And Drawings

DimensionsOverall: Height: 104 cm, Width: 77.8 cm
Frame: Height: 137.5 cm, Width: 111.3 cm

AcquisitionPresented in 1899 by Aberdeen Town Council.

CopyrightOut of copyright - CC0

LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub

Object numberABDAG004148

Keywords

Other Titles

The Gypsy Queen Of Seville

About MeOn his return from his first visit to Spain, Phillip worked up his Spanish studies and completed several 'masterly, finished renderings of Spanish life and character'.

This is one of the finest of these. Triana is the gypsy quarter of Seville and Phillip added a Shakespearean quotation as a subtitle to this portrayal of one of its noble inhabitants, a plea for tolerance to his British audience. The Prince of Morocco famously says to Portia;

Mislike me not for my Complexion - The shadow'd livery of the burnished sun..

Phillip exhibited this painting, along with several others, at the Royal Academy annual exhibition of 1853, where they proved to be a triumph, one critic describing how 'their colour and masterly execution astonished everyone.'