COLONIAL ART

Colonial art is an artistic style of a religious nature which was a source of

inspiration for the architecture of many hospitals , churches and universities .

What is colonial art?

Understanding it above all from the Latin American perspective, it dealt with all
the artistic manifestations that emerged between the arrival of Columbus to the
continent and the independence of the colonies from the Spanish empire. It was
a style with important European influence. However, it has been observed that
there has subsequently been some type of assimilation by the settlers of pre-
Columbian arts and styles.

Characteristics of colonial art

Art in America has undergone a variety of changes. We say this, above all,
because of the changes that the continent itself has also suffered. Since the
moment of its colonization, there were many transformations that the territory
experienced religiously, culturally, politically and economically . Many
maintain, rather, that it was something traumatic, although that is not the same
as saying that it was simple.

The arts were one of the most representative imposed aspects of this period
after Columbus and his arrival. These would be all the artistic expressions that
occurred between the arrival of the Europeans and the independence of Latin
America . That is, a cultural period that spanned 400 years. Some of the
characteristics that distinguish it would be the following:

 It had a highly religious component.

 It was used as one of the most effective forms of evangelization of the
indigenous people.
  Its main form of manifestation has been architecture , which was
presented through hospitals , universities and churches .
 It has strong European roots, following styles such as Renaissance ,
Baroque and Rococo .
 His painting was originally imitation of the European style. However,
over time it gained its own characteristics. He assimilated elements of
pre-Columbian culture .

Origin

As mentioned above, colonial art has a strong European influence. At first, the
participation of indigenous or pre-Columbian arts was almost nil. Much of the
colonial manifestations were, in fact, imported. It took a long time for colonial
art to more clearly assimilate aspects of pre-Columbian arts.

Types of colonial art

A somewhat hasty typology on this topic would be the following:

 Renaissance: which is a position that decides to break, opportunely,

with the styles of the Middle Ages. Instead of giving such a privileged
place to the divine, it is about reconnecting with humanity and nature
through different stylistic productions.
 Baroque: It consists of an artistic style that is very popular among the
Spanish American colonies. It was distinguished for being a movement
with a tendency towards excess details, both at the ornamental and
sumptuous level.
 Rococo: which, unlike the previous one, was distinguished by the use of
elements or colors that were light and pleasing to the eye. This in order
to represent the aristocratic lifestyle of the time.
Paint
Colonial painting had the characteristic of having a significant religious
component to its credit. At first, this was carried out only with the means that
existed at the time, without much influence from European masters. This
involved simple paintings with artistic representations of the Virgin Mary or
Jesus Christ . Later, the importation of European talent brought the influence
of great artists who followed the same lines of baroque and rococo painting.

Sculpture

On the other hand, sculpture followed similar paths. Most likely, due to the
extreme poverty of many of the colonizing captaincies and towns, religious
influence was so important. The first sculptures followed this same line. In
principle, they were only elaborations made from wood . This was also done
with gold and silver motifs.

Architecture

In principle, large cities were built around a church . This was due to an order
issued by royalty . The Spanish gave singular importance to religious
conversion . This order reached such a point that no city could be built without
the first construction of a religious work. Little by little, baroque style gained
strength in the main cities of the continent. Among the main exponents of this
trend, we would have the cases of the Viceroyalty of Peru and Mexico .
 COLONIAL ART OF PERU

In Peru, the period between the 16th and 18th centuries is known as Colonial
Art, that is, after the Spanish occupation occurred until the stage of
independence. Historical periods do not have a defined start or end date as
they evolve over time.
During the second half of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th
century, numerous chroniclers wrote about the mineral wealth and food
production of Peru. Lima became the capital of the Spanish viceroyalties,
becoming a cosmopolitan city of great importance. Lima and its Plaza Mayor
become the center of the great court and ecclesiastical ceremonies (coming of
the viceroy, births of princes in Spain, mourning festivals, pompous
processions) in which the most renowned intellectuals and artists of the time
participate. During this period the administrative work of Viceroy Toledo stands
out.

SCULPTURE

From the first years of the conquest, many Sevillian sculptures of a religious
nature were brought to Peru intended, among other things, to support the
evangelization of the Andean population. The sculptures of Sevillian masters
such as Juan Martínez Montañés became a model for artists in colonial Peru to
follow.

wood carving
Most of the sculptures during the Viceroyalty were made of silver or wood.
Stone was only used for the facades of the buildings of the viceregal
administration, universities, churches and houses of important people.
 The type of sculpture that stood out at that time was that of carved wood, which
is demonstrated in the ceilings of the minor churches and colonial convents, as
well as in the following types of work:
· Choir chairs. The chairs had backrests completely carved with images of saints or
narrations of sacred stories. The most important samples preserved in Lima are
in the convents of San Francisco and Santo Domingo, and in the cathedral of
Lima.
· Altarpieces. They were large wooden constructions, in some cases covered with
gold leaf. They were found behind the altar or in the side chapels of churches
and convents. In the altarpieces, as in the choir chairs, biblical stories or the
lives of the saints were represented. One of the most important is located in the
Lima cathedral. It is that of San Juan Bautista, made by Juan Martínez
Montañés and brought from Spain.
· Pulpits. They consisted of a kind of raised platform on the side of the church, from
where the priest delivered his homilies. All the colonial pulpits were beautifully
carved. One of the most beautiful is that of the parish of San Blas, in Cusco.
Sculptors
Among the most important sculptors in the southern mountains we have
Francisco Titu Yupanqui and Juan Tomás Tuyri Túpac. In 18th century Lima,
the mestizo sculptor Baltasar Gavilán, author of funerary sculptures and Death,
stood out.

PAINT

Colonial painting had three great influences: Spanish, Italian and Flemish.
Brought from Spain to the New World, workshops are formed in the main
American cities, where they teach Creoles, Indians and mestizos. The painting
that the indigenous people made was a religious art under the influence of
catechization.
It began transculturation. Its themes are religious and didactic for
evangelization. The painters of Lima and Cuzco worked in workshops. The
technique of oil painting on canvas predominated. European techniques and
models are maintained.
They dispense with the natural model, reflecting immediate and everyday
reality. Copies of prints, usually Flemish. Influence of Spanish and Italian
painters in both Lima and Cuzco. s. XVII and XVIII They achieve enormous
diffusion (s. XVII and XVIII) the so-called “primitive” in terms of technique.
At the end of the 16th century, three great Italian painters arrived: Bernardo
Bitti, Angelino Medoro and Mateo Pérez de Alessio, becoming the initiators of
colonial painting in Peru.
The Jesuit Bernardo Bitti was born in Camerino, Italy in 1548 and died in Lima
in 1616. He arrived in Callao in 1575. He began the decoration of the primitive
Jesuit church in Lima, today San Pedro. He was in charge of painting for
several churches in Cuzco and Alto Perú. The Coronation of the Virgin

La Peregrina, Painting from the Cuzco school. whose author is unknown.

GOLDWORK

Silversmithing is one of the most interesting artistic-historical themes in

Peruvian art, unfortunately little appreciated. Its inclusion within the
inappropriate category of “minor art”, together with its limited dissemination and
generally restricted to the productive sphere of the Colony, has not allowed its
undeniable artistic and aesthetic importance in colonial art to be recognized.
Some authors, however, have studied with notable insight, some of its cultural
significance from the perspective of Art History. Francisco Stastny has stated
that silverware had a symbolic value in the colony with multiple meanings:
economic, social, religious and aesthetic. These multiple aspects are
understandable due to the native and Hispanic human factors involved.
The goldsmiths, many of them indigenous, had a predisposition to making these
products. Long-standing techniques in ancient Peru allowed the channeling of
new skills provided by Hispanics. Furthermore, indigenous metalwork objects
survived in the Colony, such as the tupus, which despite their formal changes
continued to maintain their ancestral functions (Fig. 1). On the other hand,
following models and expressing their spirit, they achieved original works, some
of them “artistic jewels” in the art of silversmithing, which, transcending the
colonial sphere, have reached our days.

ARCHITECTURE

In colonial architecture, as in painting and sculpture, religious constructions

predominated over secular ones.

Architecture did not immediately follow European fashions, and the appearance
of a new style did not mean the disappearance of the previous one. Thus,
during the 16th century, throughout the Viceroyalty of Peru, Renaissance-style
constructions alternated with late Gothic ones, and it was common to find
Mudejar-type ceilings in buildings of both styles.
Starting in the 17th century, the baroque style emerged in colonial architecture.
The builders
The architects and master builders in the Colony were called builders. In the
16th century, the majority of those who worked in Peru were of Spanish origin.
Among them, Francisco Becerra stood out, a great promoter of the
Renaissance and one of those responsible for the construction of the Lima
cathedral. Already in the 17th century, builders born in Peru appeared, such as
Manuel de Escobar, responsible for the construction of the temple of San
Francisco.

Convent of Santa Catalina in Arequipa. It connects two interior patios. XVII century.

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