Plate 14: Main Altarpiece, Chimayo: From Portfolio "Spanish Colonial Designs of New Mexico" 1935 - 1942

This plate is from a portfolio of Spanish Colonial designs of New Mexico. It's made with watercolor, probably on paper. Imagine the artist, carefully laying down those pale pinks, greens and reds, with the black ink-like lines crisply defining each shape. I wonder what they were thinking about as they painted? Perhaps they were hoping to capture something of the awe and devotion they felt in front of the original altarpiece. See how flat the picture is, like a decorative emblem, yet the image of the body hanging on the cross evokes depth, loss, and physical pain. Note the patterned frame around the central image, like a stage, or window, that separates us from the scene, and the scene from us. It makes me think of the way we frame our experiences, and how our viewpoint shapes our perceptions. This plate feels both ancient and totally now, like a memory that keeps getting repainted.