In the previous article I gave an overall description of the church of the Immaculate Conception, better known as Las Monjas. I would like to expand on the artistic works found there, in particular some of the works of better known novo-Hispanic painters.
There are two such painters represented in Las Monjas. The first is Juan Baltasar Gomez, a well known novo-Hispanic painter of the latter part of the 18th century. He is best known for his depictions of the Virgin of Guadalupe, with several of his painting throughout the churches in San Miguel. Las Monjas also has one such painting, but there is little to distinguish it from any of the others of the Virgin of Guadalupe as it follows the typical pattern of such works.
The second painter is Juan Rodriguez Juarez, who lived from 1675 to 1727, and whose works cover broader subjects. He produced mainly religious art and portraits of high officials, and was known for his use of bright colors. One of the most interesting of his works in Las Monjas is a depiction of the circumcision of Jesus, an unusual event not frequently seen. I have written extensively about this particular painting in another article, so I will not go into it here.
There is, however, another one of the works of Juarez found in Las Monjas. It is the Visit of the Magi, another excellent painting sadly faded with age, making it hard to distinguish who the visiting kings are.
According to tradition, those who came to see Jesus were Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthazar. Melchior, bringing gold came from Persia and he was the oldest, most often depicted with white hair and beard. In the painting he is most likely the one getting down on his knees, closest to Mary, and with left hand pointing to a tray that holds jewels. The other king, Gaspar was from India, and it is probably the second one behind Melchior wearing a white turban. A vassal is holding a large metal urn containing the frankincense he was bringing as gift. The third king was Balthazar, from Africa, who brought myrrh. He is usually shown as a black man, and here seems to be the tall man toward the back. He wears a turban with a tall, orange decoration in front, called a sarpech.
Another painting of Juan Rodriguez Juarez hangs on the grated back wall of the church, behind which is the choir and the burial place of Josefa Lina de la Canal.
Aside from these works, there are many other paintings on the walls of the church, but their authors are unknown. Nevertheless, some are worthy of being highlighted.
The painting on the left represents the Adoration of the Shepherds, and is lovely on many levels. The gestures and facial expressions of the characters are realistic, particularly the woman standing in the back holding her son by the hand. It is a natural-looking posture, unconnected to any given period in time. The beautiful rendition of lighting is also admirable in the central portion of the painting.
Here is another good painting, this one depicting Jesus teaching at the temple. There is something interesting to note here, which is not unique to this painting. A line runs horizontally close to the center of the painting, representing a fold. If you check many of these ancient paintings you will note similar lines, running horizontally, or vertically. The paintings in the churches were acquired mostly during the 18th century when San Miguel el Grande was at is apex economically and financially, the time of the viceroyalty and the power of the Spanish crown. During the Colonial period they were safe from harm. However, following the War of Independence, and later during the various revolutions, there were conditions when the churches feared robbery or destruction of their religious art. In those cases the paintings were taken down and the canvases folded, and stashed away in secret areas of the churches. That explains the folds we see in so many of them to this day.
Below is another of the anonymous paintings, a lovely scene shown in muted colors. Note once again evidence of a fold running horizontally across the painting.
The last series of paintings I’d like to highlight appear high above along the corners of the dome. As all the others, we do not know who painted them.
Above on the left we find Saint Jerome reputedly a biblical scholar who made the first translation of the Bible to Latin. At his feet lies a lion—not a good resemblance of the animal, perhaps due to the fact that the painter may have never seen one. Nonetheless it is a lion, and it is the right animal for this saint. Supposedly he once removed a thorn from a lion’s paw while living as a hermit in the desert, and the lion following him around ever since.
The saint on the right is Luke, whose symbol is a bull.
The other two saints are Matthew on the left, whose most common attributes are a book and an angel. On the right is John the Evangelist, author of the fourth gospel symbolized by an eagle.
In a future article I will speak of the convent in which Josefa Lina de la Canal lived with a small contingent of nuns, and it eventual transformation into a completely different space.
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