Spanish lady with her black woman slave

In 1783 the Ecuadorian painter Vicente Albán painted several sets of six paintings representing human body types taken from local society. Dressed and adorned in the fashion of the time in the Royal Audience of Quito (nowadays the Republic of Ecuador), these figures were placed in open landscapes where there were, as in this case, different elements of indigenous nature. In particular, fruit trees from whose branches hang produce which was depicted as being open and large. Hence they showed all the characteristics which were of interest for botanical studies. These works are closely connected with the scientific purposes of the expeditions, which covered large parts of America in the 18th century, providing a great deal of information for the classification of the different natural kingdoms. The series formed part of the collection in the Natural Sciences Museum of Madrid and then went on to be integrated into the Ethnographic section of the Archaeological National Museum until 1941, when it became part of the recently created Museum of America in Madrid.