The Laundress

One of the most important facets of Laso’s paintings is his approach to the representation of racial types, which transcends the light tone of costumbrista rhetoric. In this case, the central character is a black servant hanging out the laundry. Laso imbues her image with an air of dignity that lends it a monumental aspect. To do this, Laso employs the resources of the grand academic European pictorial tradition, that he had learnt during his training in Paris with the Swiss master Charles Gleyre.