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Lot Essay
The composition of this canvas is very probably based on the 1706 painting of the same general subject by Cristóbal de Villalpando (Mexico City, ca. 1649-1714), which he executed for the Franciscan convent of Guadalupe, Zacatecas. Indeed, the painter’s elaborate signature on that version is a masterpiece in itself. The Zacatecas painting was inspired by the frontispiece engraving of the 1670 edition (Madrid, Bernardo Villa Diego) of La Mística Ciudad de Dios, a book recounting visions of the life of the Virgin Mary, and especially focused on her Immaculate Conception, written by the Spanish Franciscan nun and mystic, Sor María de Jesús de Ágreda (1602-1666). As far as we know, the Guadalupe painting by Villalpando is the first representation of the subject on canvas in New Spain. It is also one of a group of four canvases by Villalpando for the same Franciscan convent of Guadalupe, Zacatecas, all of them inspired by the writings of Sor María de Jesús and signed by the master painter. The same theme is also referenced on the façade of the church of the Guadalupe convent itself, where Franciscan friars studied and prepared themselves for missionary work.
In addition to the present canvas, the subject also appears in at least two more little known, unsigned paintings preserved in Mexico, all of them later in date than the Villalpando version of Zacatecas. One is in the Museum of the Convent of Santa Monica in Puebla. The second is a large canvas in the nave of the Franciscan church of San Fernando in Mexico City, where Fray Junípero Serra lived before going north to the Sierra Gorda and, later, to California.
In the 1706 Villalpando version of Zacatecas, below the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception and the Mystical City of God, are St. John the Evangelist and Sor María de Jesús, both of whom had visions of the Mystical City, described by St. John in the book of the Apocalypse, and by Sor María in the text just cited above. The visions of Sor María were of special interest in New Spain, because she herself claimed to have miraculously traveled to the northern territories in order to convert the natives to Christianity. As far as we know, the Zacatecas Villalpando work is the earliest version of the scene to have been painted in New Spain. In the present canvas, as in most other representations of the theme of the Mystical City in association with the Immaculate Conception, the figure of Duns Scotus, another Franciscan mystic and visionary, also appears, placed in parallel with Sor María, with St. John in the center.
The style of this particular canvas recalls the Zacatecas Villalpando version in significant ways. The figure of the Virgin, especially in the treatment of the mantle, and the sketchiness of the landscape certainly are reminiscent of the master’s exciting brushwork. The fact that the painting also includes his signature, in a form that is quite close to his most usual manner of rendering it, is also indicative of his probable participation. Nevertheless, the degree of his direct work in this version remains in question. The signature itself is not very vigorous and certainly distant from the elaborate one in the Zacatecas painting. The figures of the two angels, especially in the fullness of their faces and the solidity of their bodies, look more like the work of Juan Correa than Villalpando. The faces of the other figures, and especially the smoothness of much of their clothing also remind one of Correa rather than of Villalpando. We know for certain that the two painters knew one another. Indeed, two large canvases by Juan Correa, representing the Assumption, possibly designed in part by Villalpando, and the Entry of Jesus in Jerusalem, completed the decoration of the walls of the sacristy of Mexico City cathedral. Villalpando had painted four canvases for the same cathedral, when he was called to Puebla to execute the painting of the apse dome of the cathedral there. Other paintings attributed to Villalpando also display some characteristics of Correa's hand. This may be one of those paintings. In brief, though a full attribution to Villalpando is unlikely, one must remember that Villalpando’s enormous fame, his many commissions, as well as common workshop practice of the time, make it possible that he had a hand in this work, although someone else, probably Correa in this case, finished much of this painting.
Clara Bargellini
Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)
In addition to the present canvas, the subject also appears in at least two more little known, unsigned paintings preserved in Mexico, all of them later in date than the Villalpando version of Zacatecas. One is in the Museum of the Convent of Santa Monica in Puebla. The second is a large canvas in the nave of the Franciscan church of San Fernando in Mexico City, where Fray Junípero Serra lived before going north to the Sierra Gorda and, later, to California.
In the 1706 Villalpando version of Zacatecas, below the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception and the Mystical City of God, are St. John the Evangelist and Sor María de Jesús, both of whom had visions of the Mystical City, described by St. John in the book of the Apocalypse, and by Sor María in the text just cited above. The visions of Sor María were of special interest in New Spain, because she herself claimed to have miraculously traveled to the northern territories in order to convert the natives to Christianity. As far as we know, the Zacatecas Villalpando work is the earliest version of the scene to have been painted in New Spain. In the present canvas, as in most other representations of the theme of the Mystical City in association with the Immaculate Conception, the figure of Duns Scotus, another Franciscan mystic and visionary, also appears, placed in parallel with Sor María, with St. John in the center.
The style of this particular canvas recalls the Zacatecas Villalpando version in significant ways. The figure of the Virgin, especially in the treatment of the mantle, and the sketchiness of the landscape certainly are reminiscent of the master’s exciting brushwork. The fact that the painting also includes his signature, in a form that is quite close to his most usual manner of rendering it, is also indicative of his probable participation. Nevertheless, the degree of his direct work in this version remains in question. The signature itself is not very vigorous and certainly distant from the elaborate one in the Zacatecas painting. The figures of the two angels, especially in the fullness of their faces and the solidity of their bodies, look more like the work of Juan Correa than Villalpando. The faces of the other figures, and especially the smoothness of much of their clothing also remind one of Correa rather than of Villalpando. We know for certain that the two painters knew one another. Indeed, two large canvases by Juan Correa, representing the Assumption, possibly designed in part by Villalpando, and the Entry of Jesus in Jerusalem, completed the decoration of the walls of the sacristy of Mexico City cathedral. Villalpando had painted four canvases for the same cathedral, when he was called to Puebla to execute the painting of the apse dome of the cathedral there. Other paintings attributed to Villalpando also display some characteristics of Correa's hand. This may be one of those paintings. In brief, though a full attribution to Villalpando is unlikely, one must remember that Villalpando’s enormous fame, his many commissions, as well as common workshop practice of the time, make it possible that he had a hand in this work, although someone else, probably Correa in this case, finished much of this painting.
Clara Bargellini
Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)