La Belle Otera

This is my impression of La Belle Otero, a stage name was born in Spain in 1868 into a very poor family. At the age of ten she had to go working as her father had left her mother. She was then raped and lived a life full of abuse till the age of fourteen, when she escaped with her then boyfriend, who also became her dance partner. The travelled together performing. Later La Belle Otero ended up in Paris where she built a thriving career as a dancer. You can read more about her in my book The HeArt of Paris, a unique journey to pay homage to women who made the evolution of art possible. 

Prints of this paintings are available.