Art Journal · 1992 · 52 citations · 0 references
HumanitiesArt HistoryHistoryIconographyLatin American HistoryLatino StudiesMexican American HistoryMural PaintingParadise Garden ImagerySociopolitical ContextVirgin Of Guadalupe Imagery
The Virgin of Guadalupe stands out among Mexican Virgin images for its overarching political significance, and the author, Jeanette Favrot Peterson of UC Santa Barbara, has studied related imperial policy. The essay challenges two myths: that the cult instantly united all social strata of New Spain and that Guadalupe has always symbolized freedom for oppressed natives. The author argues that Guadalupe’s meaning was instead reinterpreted by various ruling parties during periods of sociopolitical reconstitution. Author: Jeanette Favrot Peterson, assistant professor of art history.
AbstractOf the many images of the Virgin Immaculate venerated in Mexico, only the Virgin of Guadalupe has an overarching political significance. This essay will challenge two myths concerning her role as national emblem: first, that her cult spontaneously welded together all the strata of New Spain; and second, that Guadalupe from the sixteenth century on served as a symbol of freedom for the oppressed native populations. Instead, her meaning was reinterpreted for different ruling parties primarily in those times when existing sociopolitical institutions were being reconstituted. Additional informationNotes on contributorsJeanette Favrot PetersonJEANETTE FAVROT PETERSON, assistant professor of art history. University of California, Santa Barbara, is the author of The Paradise Garden Murals of Malinalco: Utopia and Imperial Policy in Sixteeth-century Mexico (1992).