Page 132 - The mystery of faith

JUAN DE MESA

(Córdoba 1583? – 1627)

12. Inmaculada, c. 1620

Wood, polychromed and gilded
138 x 54 x 44 cm (54 ? x 21 ¼ x 17 ? in.)
PROVENANCE: Jaime Parlade (Conde de Aguilar), Cordoba; Andre González Moro, Seville;
Andrés Brehemer Moro, Seville; Antonio Gil Salas

One of the most potent artistic issues of the Spanish Golden Age was the subject of the
Immaculate Conception. While deeply rooted in religion, it had social and political
ramifications. This belief, not made into a dogma until centuries later (1854), had a long and
hazardous path, with many supporters and detractors.1 Between 1615 and 1618, this theme,
more than any other, appealed to Hispanic sensibility and was an expression of popularized faith where
the mass of public outpouring overruled other opinions.2 This controversy not unnaturally influenced
the arts and, in those years, most particularly sculptural works. Two different types of Inmaculadas
were made in the most important creative centres of the time: Valladolid (Castille) and Seville
(Andalusia). In Castille, Gregorio Fernández made an Inmaculada de la Vera Cruz (Salamanca, 1621)
that portrayed a humble adolescent praying, with very long hair and curls on her forehead (Fig. 1). The
mantle which covers her shoulders and is pinned, forms a sharp triangular silhouette that is typical of
the Castillian School. In Andalusia, Juan Martínez Montañés’ long series dedicated to this
iconographical subject culminated in La Cieguecita (1629–1632), which perfectly depicts the Sevillian
features that were well-known and that captivated locals and foreigners alike: a graceful and virginal
maiden, in mild frontal contrapposto pose, the mantle covering her in a circular movement; the hands
lightly placed towards one side while the head is inclined towards the other, and standing upon a
crescent moon peopled by a variety of expressive seraphim (Fig. 2).3

Fig. 1 Fig. 2

132