VICENTE GÓMEZ Y NOVELLA, (Valencia, 1873-1956). "Tempest". Oil on canvas. Signed in the lower left corner. Measurements: 98 x 170 cm . Vicente Gómez y Novella was a painter and photographer. He studied at the School of Fine Arts of San Carlos in Valencia, being a disciple of Ignacio Pinazo, and specialised in landscape and portrait painting. He took part in several editions of the National Fine Arts Exhibitions, where he was awarded an honourable mention in 1892 and a decoration in 1912. He also worked on mural decorations, such as those at the Faculty of Medicine in Valencia. From 1905 he took up photography, signing his name as Novella. As a photographer, he took part in the National Competitions of 1906 and 1907 and represented Valencia at the National Assembly of Photographers in 1908. He also contributed to magazines such as Grafos Ilustrado, La Fotografía, Sol y Sombra and Blanco y Negro. In 1919 he was appointed photographer to the Royal Household. In 1928 he returned to painting and shortly afterwards was elected a member of the San Carlos Academy of Fine Arts. The following pastel shows a procession entering the mosque in Cordoba. The ecclesiastical retinue walks through the central part, while the spectators and the public stand expectantly surrounding the entrance to the building.