Plate 28: The Holy Family: From Portfolio "Spanish Colonial Designs of New Mexico" 1935 - 1942

This image of The Holy Family is part of a portfolio of Spanish Colonial Designs of New Mexico and was made anonymously, we don't know when. The stark lines and flat planes of colour remind me of early modernism, but the wonky perspective and simplified forms give the image an outsider feel. Look at Mary’s hand on her chest, so simplified it’s almost a blob, and notice how the architecture behind the family seems to tilt and sway, as if alive. I’m struck by the red, set against the yellow. It’s like the artist took a basic colour wheel and decided to make the most of it. But there's a real sophistication here too, a control of the materials. The paint is thin, almost translucent, allowing the texture of the paper to show through. There’s something deeply moving about this image. I’m reminded of the work of Bill Traylor, or even, dare I say, a simplified Matisse; art isn’t a linear journey, it’s an ongoing conversation.