‘Extremely rare’ 17th century painting of Black woman with White companion placed under bar exported from UK

Titled “Two Women’s Narrative Painting, British School”, the painting presents a Black nanny and her White companion as peers, as they dress, hair, jewelry and makeup alike.

The depiction of a black babysitter in a painting in the 1650s was uncommon, especially as an adult, as opposed to a child in a submissive position, sparking “an important debate importance of race and gender during this period,” according to the site’s press statement.

The painting is also unique because both women wear the same “beauty patch”, a type of cosmetic facial makeup that was in vogue in the 17th century. The patterns on their faces marked “the sin of pride,” according to the statement.

The style of the work correlated with woodblock prints popular at the time, meaning that the composition was allegorical and associated with satirical verses, sermons, and pamphlets.

UK Arts Minister Stephen Parkinson, known as Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, decided to export the bar with the help of the Review Committee on Exports of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest (RCEWA) ) – an independent body that gives fair advice on subjects of national importance to the country.

“This fascinating picture has a lot to teach us about 17th-century England, including important areas of race and gender,” says Parkinson.

“I hope to be able to find a gallery or museum in the UK to buy this painting for the country, so that more people can participate in continuing to research and discuss it,” he said. more.

“This anonymous painting is a very rare piece in British art, being a mid-seventeenth-century work depicting a black woman and a white woman of equal status. It is not a portrait. of real people, as far as we know, but the Inscription reveals that it is, in fact, a harsh moral picture condemning the use of cosmetics and especially the elaborate beauty stickers that are currently prevalent at the time,” RCEWA members Pippa Shirley and Christopher Baker said in the DCMS statement.

“Although artistically undistinguished, its imagery relates in fascinating ways to contemporary stereotypes of women, fashion and, through the juxtaposition of characters, race.” .

“The fact that it has emerged only recently and only one other related picture is known to date, and it can be used to explore important aspects of black culture in the UK. seventeenth century, making it especially important that it remains in this country so that its meaning can be widely studied and understood.”

Further study could reveal how the painting connects with contemporary artwork and writing and the purposes for which it might have been created and used, Shirley and Baker added.