Slave Girl
Artist/Maker
Valentine Cameron Prinsep
England (b. India), 1838-1904
Dateca. 1880
CultureEnglish
Mediumoil on canvas
DimensionsSight: 35 1/2 x 27 1/2 in. (90.2 x 69.9 cm)
Framed: 48 x 40 1/4 x 2 7/8 in. (121.9 x 102.2 x 7.3 cm)
Framed: 48 x 40 1/4 x 2 7/8 in. (121.9 x 102.2 x 7.3 cm)
ClassificationsVisual Works
Credit LineGift of Mr. and Mrs. Alan Radcliff
Terms
Object number72.009.000
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionAlthough Prinsep was associated with Rossetti and the Pre-Raphaelites, the Orientalist compostion, Slavegirl more accurately reflects the work of the so-called High Renaissance Victorian painters after the 1850s, such as George Frederick Watts (whose greatest patron, Thorby, was Valentine’s father). These artists adopted a classical figurative approach based on 16th century Italian art and sculpture. This intriguing image of a beautiful, occidental woman hovering within Eastern surroundings, reflects the Victorian fascination with the exotic and the romantic, as well as the interest of the Indian-born artist, who - Art of Europe
painted a number of similar works. Tales of the white slave trade were popular contemporary subjects of artistic and literary compositions, stories of European women kept as slaves or wives in Middle Eastern harems being titillating, if not factual. Here, sumptuously painted details suggest a palatial, Islamic setting.
