Saint Anthony
- unknown artist
Unknown artist, Saint Anthony, 1600s. Feathers and paper on copper; 11⅛ × 8 in. Gift of the Collection of Frederick and Jan Mayer, 2011.424.
Many Indigenous art forms continued during the Spanish Colonial era and were adapted to European and Christian subject matter. The tradition of feather arts in Mexico – previously used for making elegant Mexica (Aztec) feather capes, shields, and images of Indigenous deities – was now used to create shimmering pictures of Christian saints and became collectors’ items in Europe. Previously made in royal Mexica schools, including one attached to Moctezuma’s aviary, after the conquest feather artists (amantecas) made Mexica-style feather mosaics depicting Catholic iconography. Particularly renowned were the mission schools of Mexico City and Michoacán in western Mexico. When new, the natural iridescence of the feathers produced a shimmering effect that Christians associated with divine light from heaven.
-- Donna Pierce, 2015
- Splendors of Baroque Mexico, Denver Art Museum, 1984-85, Denver Art Museum Permanent Galleries, 1999-2005.
- “ReVision: Art in the Americas” — Denver Art Museum, 10/24/2021 – 7/17/2022