Thursday, May 8, 2014

MARYS for May #4


Madonna of Mercy
Anonymous Peruvian Artist, Cuzco School, 18-19th century

When Spanish missionaries came to South America, they brought with them paintings and prints as tools of evangelization.  Part of the missionary plan was the establishment of studios where European artists taught native peoples to produce devotional works of art. The greatest of these schools was in Cuzco, Peru. Eventually, the indigenous artists developed their own unique styles and understanding of the scenes they depicted.  This Cusqueña Madonna is an example of their work. Instead of the cool, ethereal blues so common in European works, Mary is robed in rich, warm earth tones.  Rather than a placid Italian landscape, we see an Indian village set among tropical trees and birds. Life-giving water falls down from the mountains to water the valley where Mary hovers above the ground as spring flowers grow at her feet.
The icon of Mary in a voluminous cloak is called the Madonna of Mercy.  Her robe, richly embroidered with roses, recalls Jesus’ lament in Matthew 23:37 “How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.” As Mary’s children, we are invited to find shelter in her protection and mercy under her loving “wings.” 

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