Gertrudis Goméz de Avellaneda

Because of its noble elegance, it is one of the most famous female portraits by Federico de Madrazo, the main representative of Spanish painting in the second half of the 19th century.

This masterpiece shows that the painter fully masters all the technical and stylistic resources of the portrait genre.

Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda (1814-1873) is one of the most important figures in Spanish Romantic literature. She moved from Cuba to Spain in 1836 and wrote her first novel in Seville, "Sab" (1839), and her first drama, "Leoncia" (1840). In order to become known in literary circles, she used to sign her works under the pseudonym "The Pilgrim".