Juan de Pareja

Who was Juan de Pareja?

Juan de Pareja was a Spanish painter, born in Antequera, near Málaga, Spain. He is primarily known as a member of the household and workshop of painter Diego Velázquez. His 1661 work The Calling of St. Matthew is currently on display at the Museo del Prado in Madrid, Spain. De Pareja became Velazquez's assistant sometime after the master returned to Madrid from his first trip to Italy in January 1631. After the death of Velazquez he entered the service of Juan del Mazo.

He was a slave and afterwards a freedman, and was described as a "Morisco", being "of mixed parentage and a strange color". The usage of the word "morisco" at the time carried two possible meanings. It was used to refer to both descendants of Muslims who remained in Spain after the reconquest, and to refer to the offspring of a Spaniard and a mulatto. De Pareja was given his freedom in Rome by Velázquez during a trip to Italy in 1650. Around the same time Velázquez painted Pareja's portrait, now in New York. The document of his manumission exists.