Round
two of the "You Just Blew Mind" game on the fifth floor of the North
Building of the Denver Art Museum is sponsored by their collection of Spanish
Colonial Art. Again I can only
scratch the surface of what was there.
I suppose you'd have to go Spain or Mexico to discover a finer
collection. There were rooms with
such exquisite silver and gold work from utensils to jewelry to royal crowns--and
all of it glaring so that my little camera couldn't get a good shot! The only time I've ever seen an
exhibition of this quality (and it was dinky by comparison) was when I
accompanied Dr. Sally Promey from the University of Maryland's school of Art on
a trip of doctoral candidates to see a focus show at the Winterthur Estate and
Museum in Wilmington, DE many years ago.
It was my first exposure to this genre of art and I thought how
neglected it was at the time.
Well, clearly the Denver Art Museum has not been guilty of that!
"Inca
Rulers" circa 1890, Peruvian, Artist unknown. What a beautiful collection of portraits. They are reminiscent of the work of
American artist George Catlin and his series of portraits of Native American
chiefs. Then comes the punch
line--the final portrait of Spanish Conquistador Francisco Pizarro.
"Three
Kings on Horseback" circa 1750, Artist unknown, Ecuador
"St.
Joseph and the Christ Child" circa 1815, Artist unknown, Cuzco, Peru
"Pair
of Doors" circa 1750, Artist/s unknown, Quito, Ecuador
"St.
John Nepomuk" 1766, by Míguel Cabrera, Mexican
"St.
Anthony and the Christ Child" (ivory) circa 1750, Artist unknown, Goa,
India
I
found this piece fascinating for it's provenance. The acknowledgement that Spanish Colonialism was not limited
to North and South America.
"Set
of casta paintings" circa 1775, by Francisco Clapera, Mexican
"De
Cambujo, y Mulata, Albarazado" circa 1775 by Francisco Clapera, Mexican
"De
Espanol, e India, nace Mestiza" circa 1775 by Francisco Clapera, Mexican
"Garden
Party on the Terrace of a Country Home" circa 1740, Artist unknown
"St.
Ferdinand" circa 1730, Artist unknown, Querétaro, Mexico
"San Hipólito y las secuelas de la conquista" 2016
by James Córdova
There is a
space for contemporary art that is derivative of the classic works called
"
Cuatro[4]".
From the
museum's website regarding this piece: "
The Cuatro[4] series
connects local creatives to the DAM’s pre-Columbian and Spanish Colonial
collections to bring the artworks to life. James Córdova
is our current Cuatro[4] artist. His work, "San
Hipólito y las Secuelas de la Conquista," provides an in-depth look at how
the mixing of indigenous and European cultures came together to create a new
visual vocabulary."
It is
awfully pretty.
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