Novo-Hispanic school; end of the XVIII century.

Novo-Hispanic school; late eighteenth century.
"Calvary and saints".
Oil on canvas.
It has informative cartouche on the back.
Measurements: 35 x 25 cm; 41,5 x 32 cm (frame).
Devotional scene in which the main image is appreciated as the figure of Christ on the cross. Framed in the superior zone, the image of Jesus is accompanied with the presence of several cartouches that let glimpse different portraits of saints. The intermediate zone is reserved for "Our Lady of Solitude". All the borders have a legend announcing the saint represented in the scene. Although in some cases, such as San Antonio or Santa Lucia, they bear their iconographic attributes. This type of works in which numerous saints were represented accompanying a biblical passage, in this case of the Calvary, was a common resource in the novo-Hispanic painting. To a large extent, this was due to the pedagogical purpose of painting, which was used as a tool for Christian evangelization.
It is worth mentioning that, during the Spanish colonial domination, a mainly religious painting was developed, aimed at Christianizing the indigenous peoples. The local painters were modeled on Spanish works, which they followed literally in terms of types and iconography. The most frequent models were the harquebusier angels and the triangular virgins, however, it was not until the first years of the 19th century, already in times of independence and political opening of some of the colonies, that several artists began to represent a new model of painting with its own identity.