Novohispanic School; second half of the XVIII century.

Novohispanic School; second half of the XVIII century.
"Calvary".
Oil on copper.
Measurements: 28 x 22 cm; 35 x 29,5 cm (frame).
This canvas shows the Crucifixion with the Virgin and St. John the Evangelist at the feet, an iconographic form evolved from the original Byzantine Déesis, which represented Christ in Majesty accompanied by Mary and St. John the Baptist. They are accompanied in the scene by Mary Magdalene who kneels prostrate at the feet of Jesus. In Western art, the representation of Christ on the cross was preferred, as a narrative scene, and the figure of St. John the Baptist was replaced by that of John the Evangelist, an image that in its conception and form is the result of the expression of the people and the deepest feelings that nested in it.
Stylistically the work is close to the painting of José de Paéz, a very prolific painter, belonging to the generation after Miguel Cabrera. He produced excellent portraits and caste paintings, as well as religious compositions of various sizes, from nun's shields to enormous canvases that covered entire walls. Although his works are distributed in churches in Mexico and Peru, it is known that he exported a large part of his production. He trained with the painter Nicolás Enríquez, and worked throughout his life in his Mexico City studio. It is not known if Paez traveled abroad, although the fame of his work is known, given the works by him that exist in various American countries. He mainly worked on commissions for different orders of the viceroyalty of New Spain, the richest of the crown at the time. He is represented in the Andrés Blastein Collection, the Museum of Mexican History, the Museum of America in Madrid, the Soumaya Museum in Mexico, the Museum of the Columbus House in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the National Museum of Catholic Art and History in New York, among others. The second half of the 18th century in New Spain was marked by the economic boom, so aristocrats and religious orders had enough resources to build new buildings or to renovate existing ones. Thus, the demand for religious art increased, as well as for portrait and caste painting. In this period of abundant demand, José Páez, one of the most outstanding exponents of the Novo-Hispanic school of the 18th century, developed his work. His style is classicist, with a predominance of drawing, a marked and expressive line that endows the figures with sculptural corporeity. However, he does not neglect the coloring, softly toned and very studied, contained and balanced, as we see in this set of canvases. Also noteworthy is the wise use of lighting, which subtly models the figures, giving them volume and presence in space, without resorting to complex perspectival constructions.