Art of New Spain: Spanish Colonies in the Americas

- named after Antonio de Mendoza, viceroy of New Spain

- intended as a history of the Aztecs for Charles V of Holy Roman Empire

- created 20 years after Spanish conquest

- shows Aztec rulers and daily life in Mexico

- uses pictograms created by Aztec artists that were later annotated in Spanish

- depicted founding of Tenochtitlan and conquest of Colhuacan and Tenayucan on bottom

- enemy temples on fire while Aztec warriors carry clubs and shields

- small representation of Temple Mayor above eagle

- skulls represent sacrificial victims

- eagle landing on a cactus at intersection of two waterways commemorates division of Tenochtitlan into four quarters

- current Mexican flag has eagle perched on a cactus that rests on a rock, as seen in here

Frontispiece of the Codex Mendoza

- angel depicted w/ arquebus (a form of rifle) instead of traditional sword

- military poses derived from European engravings of military exercises

- probably one in a series of angel drummers, buglers, standard bearers, and holders of swords

- drapery of a 17th century Spanish aristocrat; rich costuming

- mannerist influence in stiffness of figure; dance-like pose

- Latin inscription: "Asiel, fear of God"

- angel appears in androgynous stance

- gold embroidered on fabric favored by indigenous people

- may have originated in region around Lake Titicaca in Collao region of Peru

Angel with Arquebus, Asiel Timor Dei

- commissioned by Jose Sarmiento de Valladares, viceroy of New Spain

- displayed in Viceregal Palace in Mexico City

- only known example of art work that combines biombos and enconchados

- two faces of screen: hunting scene and war scene

- hunting scene suited to intimate space for small receptions

- war scene more suited for grander room w/ political importance

- war scene depicts contemporary event of the Great Turkish War 1683-1699; Dutch print used for inspiration

- illustrates a scene of Habsburg power

Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and Hunting Scenes

- painting describes event where Mary appeared to Native Americans on a hill called Tepeyac, a shrine sacred to a pre-Columbian goddess

- Mary ordered a Native American convert, Juan Diego in 1531, to tell the local archbishop to build a sanctuary on this site

- Mary made the hilltop flower and Juan Diego brought the flowers to the archbishop; Juan Diego's cloth revealed the Virgin's image

- Virgin of Guadalupe most revered symbol in Mexico; patroness of New Spain

- symbol of Mexico: eagle perched on cactus at bottom center

- in Guadalupe images Mary always stands on a crescent moon; surrounded by sun rays; clouds behind

- Revelations 12:1: "A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head"

- surrounded by four roundels depicting apparition to Juan Diego at moment Virgin's image is revealed in his tunic

- brocade Virgin's robes made of enconchados (influence of Asian decorative arts)

- image in demand: many made for export around New Spain

Virgin of Guadalupe

- panel from first known series of casta paintings; may not have been a completed set

- Spanish social hierarchy w/ European ancestry at top; sixteen different gradations of social scale

- Spanish blood linked to civilizing forces; waring lavish costumes

- Africans and Indians rendered w/ respect; showing harmony and mixing of classes

- many Africans and Indians rendered w/ South European features: slim noses, curly hair, almond-shaped eyes

- Spanish colonists commissioned w/ works to be sent abroad to show how caste system of New World works

- not considered art objects but illustrations of ethnic groups

Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo

- child prodigy (1651-1695)

- creole woman, became a nun in 1669

- feminist culture survived in Mexican convents where privileged nuns lived in comfort w/ servants and households

- literary figure, published books widely read; wrote poetry and theatrical pieces

- maintained a great library

- instrumental in giving girls and education in a male-dominated world

- wearing habit of religious order of the Hermits of St. Jerome nuns of Mexico City; including the escudo (framed vellum painting)

- seated in library surrounded by symbols of faith and learning

- many portraits survive, but all images derive from now lost self-portrait

- painting done 55 years after death for admirers

Portrait of Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz