Portrait of Rosa Nalda Gil,1890 Oil on canvas 82 x 60 cm (31 1/2 x 23 1/2 in) The appreciation of a portrait begins in the private realm - its depth and fullness of meaning known only to the subjects family and close friends. But when a picture enters the public domain _ that is, when the sitters inner circle is no longer around or for one reason or another decides to bring it outside, then the question of identity takes a back seat (unless of course the sitter is of historical importance) and notions of beauty and symbolism _ and by extension virtue - are held up for scrutiny by other viewers. The ability of an artist to create an image that conveys these ineffable qualities, therefore, becomes the measure of the success of a portrait, not simply as a mimetic representation of a particular person, but ultimately as a work of art. It is hardly surprising then that some of the most important paintings that have come down through the centuries are portraits: the Arnolfini couple of Van Eyck, Vermeers Girl with a Pearl Earring, Las Meninas by Velazquez, and undoubtedly the most famous one of all, da Vincis Mona Lisa. Viewing this half-length portrait signed and dated �Paris 1890 by the celebrated Filipino expatriate painter Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo, one is immediately taken by the charming depiction of this little girl - her doe eyes and rosy cheeks rendered with a delicate glow, perfectly capturing her youthful innocence. The French Impressionist style, marked by a great attention to the effects of light, the use of loose brushwork, and details that appear as fleeting fragments, is in luminous and luxurious evidence as seen in the lace hem and tasselled sleeves of the subjects dress, her stud earrings and bracelet rendered in relief, the ribbon patterns and sheen of the damask wallpaper in the background, and in the sumptuous texture of the chaise on which the toddler sits with poise and aplomb. According to advisor Ramon E.S. Lerma, This portrait is a picture of the utmost dignity. The little girl, dressed in a manner typical of children of Parisian fin de siecle bourgeois society, is propped up on a plush pillow in what appears to be the salon of a grand maison, her style and demeanour epitomizing the manners and fashion of the time. One cannot help but feel a sense of nostalgia and longing for this bygone age of elegance and innocence. Hidalgos decision to use a more traditional painting style to render the childs face and hands is indicative of the influence of Neoclassicism and Romanticism, similar to the portraits of Ingres and Delacroix. Just who is Rosa Nalda Gil and how did she come to be painted by Hidalgo? Research of the paintings provenance reveals a Philippine connection to a Spanish military official by the name of Pablo Nalda Gil who was born in San Juan, La Union in 1858 and who died defending his property during the Philippine Revolution in 1898. According to genealogical records, Pablo was the son of Carlos Nalda Molina, a military doctor, who married Rosa Gil Ocampo, a Spanish-Tagalog. Gil Ocampos father was Felino Gil Talens, another Spanish military official, who was married to Francisca Ocampo Davis. Felino Gil was the founder of the Escuela de Artes y Oficios de Bacolor, the oldest vocational school in Far East Asia, now known as Don Honorio Ventura Technological State University. Rewarded for his services to the government with a large tract of land in Porac, Pampanga, the haciendero would later marry Carlota Aguilar, and count among his descendants the actress Rosemarie Gil, and her celebrated family of thespians. Sources: https://espanol.groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/FilipinasGenealogia/conversations/messages/165 http://viewsfromthepampang.blogspot.com/2011/02/238-gils-of-porac-acting-is-all-in.html Email from David Duran Sampedro, Madrid, stating that Rosa Nalda Gil is the great grandmother of the former owner of the painting, and that the sitter's father was a member of the Spanish military in the Philippines.