Las Presidentas (The Women Presiding)
1915. Oil on canvas.On display elsewhere
The title of this monumental scene of local custom refers to the women forming the entourage of the president of a bullfight. Characterised by their luxurious dresses, hair-combs, mantillas and shawls, they are making the final adjustments to their outfits before the event. The scene, which one critic called an "outpouring of feminine grace and Spanishness", lies half-way between the group portrait and the costumbrista depiction of one of the most frequent social gatherings at the start of the twentieth century, a great occasion for the exhibition of class distinction.
G. Navarro, Carlos, Invitadas. Fragmentos sobre mujeres, ideología y artes plásticas en España (1833-1931), Madrid, Museo Nacional del Prado, 2020, p.224 nº 47
