Andalusian School; XVIII century.

Andalusian School; XVIII century.
"Infant Jesus with Salvator Mundi".
Carved wood, polychrome and textile.
It has beacon of the nineteenth century.
Measurements: 37 x 12 x 10 cm; 61 x 28 cm.
Sculpture in carved wood that shows Christ as "Salvator Mundi", an iconography that represents the Christological concept of Jesus Christ as universal savior, in relation to his role as judge in the Final Judgment and his character of Redeemer. It is characterized by presenting Christ raising his right hand as a sign of blessing, while he rests his left hand on a large cross, emphasizing the universal character of Christian doctrine and of Christ's redemptive act. The model chosen here by the sculptor is a Christ child with soft flesh tones, soft features and velvety tones, moving away from hieratic models that were associated with the iconography of the Salvator Mundi, resolve this piece that alleges idealism in the way of resolving the candid countenance.
The Andalusian sculpture is made of polychromed wood, a task of capital importance, since the final result of the work depends to a great extent on it. The process had to be carried out by examined masters, and it could happen that the sculptor himself was also the painter. On the other hand, it is also worth mentioning that the economic development and the strength that Seville experienced after the Discovery, having become the gateway and port of the Indies, was quickly reflected in art; from the first decades of the century, masters of different origins began to constantly come to the city in search of the American market and the potential Sevillian clientele, increasingly attracted by the new artistic forms arriving from Italy. Italian, French and Flemish masters, with varying degrees of knowledge of the new aesthetics, alternate with artists from Castilian lands, who have also come into contact with the prevailing artistic currents in the Italian peninsula, thus becoming the most sought after in the art market. The teachings of all of them, together with the classical substratum inherent to the Andalusian culture itself, will constitute the foundations on which the Andalusian sculptural school will be built.