Other editions of book I, Juan de Pareja

In the era of Rembrandt, Rubens and Van Dyke, Spain had its own great painter -- Diego Velasquez. His assistant is Juan, an African slave who helps his master in his studio by preparing paints and stretching canvasses. Soon, by spending time in the studio and watching his master's technique, Juan begins to teach himself to paint too. But such work as the creation of art is forbidden to slaves. Delighted with his work but carefully guarding his secret, Juan is torn between the need to protect himself and the need to reveal his talent.

When the great Velaquez was painting his masterpieces at the Spanish court in the seventeenth century, his colors were expertly mixed and his canvases carefully prepared by his Negro slave, Juan de Pareja. In this vibrant novel that depicts both the beauty and the cruelty of the time and place, Elizabeth Borton de Trevino tells the story of Juan, who was born a slave and died an accomplished and respected artist.