Large altarpiece "Coronation of Mary", early 19th century
Description
oil on canvas, in magnificent wooden frame with gilded stucco decoration and mirror glass inlays (m: 137.5 cm x 117.5 cm)
“Cuzco school” refers to a group of European and indigenous painters active in Cuzco, Peru, from the 16th through the 18th century. The term refers not to an easily identifiable style from a single period of history but instead to the artists of multiple ethnicities who worked in various styles throughout the history of the Viceroyalty of Peru in and around Cuzco.
Situated high in the Andes, Cuzco had been the capital of the Inca empire and had become the headquarters for each of the religious orders in the Viceroyalty. Works of art, especially pictures, served in the early colonial period primarily to spread the new Christian faith. The visual representation of biblical themes was superior to all other proselytizing methods, since complicated Christian beliefs were difficult to convey, especially due to the language barrier.
European artists began working in Cuzco shortly after Spanish colonization of the city in the 1530s. They introduced the styles they had learned in their native countries to indigenous artists who in turn brought their own indigenous traditions with them, so that completely new styles emerged.
American colonial art was influenced by European styles such as the late Renaissance and Mannerism, which were influenced by Italian, Flemish and Spanish artists. Above all, the rich ornamentation of the Baroque was very popular with indigenous people and Creoles, Spaniards who were born in America.
One of the first European painters in Cuzco, Juan Iñigo de Loyola, who arrived in 1545, trained indigenous artists in the style of Spanish Mannerism. Several of the most influential painters of the period, though, were Italian, including Bernardo Bitti, a Jesuit who spent several lengthy periods in Cuzco. Bitti, who had first visited Cuzco in 1583, often collaborated with fellow Jesuit Pedro de Vargas. Other Mannerist painters whose work shaped that of 16th- and 17th-century Cuzco were Mateo Pérez de Alesio and Angelino Medoro.