Adoration of the Magi 

Marcos Zapata created this painting, Adoration of the Magi, sometime during his career in 18th century Peru. Zapata was among the Indigenous artists of the Cusco School who blended traditional European religious iconography with Indigenous aesthetics and worldviews. The Adoration of the Magi is rendered with the syncretic style which characterizes the Cusco School. Here, the three magi paying homage to the infant Christ are richly dressed, one of them depicted with a darker complexion; this inclusion reflects the social stratifications of the Spanish colonial world, where race, class, and religion were inextricably linked. Zapata's painting invites us to consider the complex negotiation of cultural identities during the colonial period, and how these dynamics manifested in art. Zapata’s work serves as a historical document, reflecting the tensions and adaptations that shaped religious expression in colonial Latin America. The image creates space for contemplating the emotional and spiritual negotiations of identity within the context of colonial power structures.