Art and Imagination in Spanish America

Imperial expansion, conquest, colonization, and the trans-Atlantic slave trade marked the period spanning from 1500 to 1800. Cataclysmic social and geopolitical shifts brought people into closer contact than ever before—in real and imagined ways, propelling the creative refashioning of the material culture that surrounded them. After the Spaniards began colonizing the Americas in the late fifteenth century and set out to spread Christianity, artists working there drew from a range of traditions—Indigenous, European, Asian, and African, reflecting the interconnectedness of the world. Private homes and civic and ecclesiastic institutions soon teemed with imported and local objects.

Spanish America was neither a homogeneous nor a monolithic entity, and local artists, including those who remain unidentified, were not passive absorbers of foreign traditions. While acknowledging the profound violence that marked the process of conquest and colonization, this exhibition explores the intricate social, economic, and artistic dynamics of these societies that led to the creation of astounding new artworks—many shipped to other markets in their own day. This exhibition of paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts underscores the generative power of Spanish America and its central position as a global crossroads. The works are drawn from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s notable collection of Spanish colonial art, which has largely been formed in the last fifteenth years.

Organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Supported in part by the

Sandra Schatten Foundation

Program and Spanish translation sponsor

Supported in part by

Frist Foundation, Metro Arts, Tennessee Arts Commission, and National Endowment for the Arts logos

Exhibition gallery

Virgin Mary and baby sitting in a wooden chair. She is wearing a long gold gown holding

Artist unidentified. Quito, Ecuador. Dressed Image of the Virgin of Mercy or “The Pilgrim of Quito” (Imagen vestidera de la Virgen de la Merced o “Peregrina de Quito”), ca. 1700–1750. Polychromed and gilded wood, iron, and glass; 20 7/8 × 9 13/16 × 9 7/16 in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, purchased with funds provided by the Bernard and Edith Lewin Collection of Mexican Art Deaccession Fund, M.2022.12a-e. Photo: Carteia Fine Arts Madrid

Virgin of Bethlehem standing on a gold platform holding a child with cherubs holding back red velvet curtains on either side of her.

Artist unidentified. Cuzco school, Peru. Virgin of Bethlehem (La Virgen de Belén), ca. 1700–1720. Oil on canvas; 64 3/8 x 41 1/8 in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Gift of Eunice and Douglas Goodan, M.2009.158. Photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

The Virgin of Guadalupe standing with her hands together in a praying position. She has on a gold crown and is wearing a black robe with gold stars which is being held by a young boy at the bottom of the painting.

Antonio de Arellano (Mexico, 1638–1714); Manuel de Arellano (Mexico, 1662–1722). The Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgen de Guadalupe), ca. 1690. Oil on canvas; 20 7/8 × 9 13/16 × 9 7/16 in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Purchased with funds provided by the Bernard and Edith Lewin Collection of Mexican Art Deaccession Fund. Photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Round painting with the Virgin of the apocalypse in the center surrounded by various saints

Attributed to Miguel Cabrera (Mexico, ca. 1715–1768). Nun’s Badge with the Virgin of the Apocalypse and Saints, ca. 1760. Oil on copper; diameter: 7 in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, purchased with funds provided by the Bernard and Edith Lewin Collection of Mexican Art Deaccession Fund, M.2018.177.2. © Museum Associates/LACMA

Ornate octagonal box made of pearl colored pieces and wood

Sewing or Jewelry Box (Costurero o joyero), Guatemala (for export market, possibly Peru), last third of the 18th century. Wood, inlaid with mother-of pearl and tortoiseshell, brass, silver, and paint; diameter: 15 3/4 in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, purchased with funds provided by the Bernard and Edith Lewin Collection of Mexican Art Deaccession Fund. Photo: Galerie Terrades, Paris

Peru, southern Andes. Poncho with Musicians (Poncho con músicos), late 17th–early 18th century. Cotton, camelid-fiber, and silk and metallic-thread tapestry weave; 69 1/2 x 66 in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Gift of Miss Bella Mabury, M.40.1.76. Photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

Decorative cup made of carved coconut shell with flowers and a silver base with ornate side decoration

Mexico or Guatemala. Coconut-Shell Cup (Coco chocolatero), 17th–18th century. Polished and engraved coconut shell and silver; 4 1/2 x 4 x 2 1/2 in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, gift of Ronald A. Belkin, Long Beach, California, in memory of Charles B. Tate, M.2015.69.2. Photo: © Museum Associates/LACMA

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Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800: Highlights from LACMA’s Collection

Exhibition gallery

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