Antonio de Torres
Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgen de Guadalupe)circa 1720

On view:

Geffen Galleries, floor 2

Oil painting of the Virgin of Guadalupe standing full-length in a gold mandorla, wearing a star-covered blue mantle, surrounded by a floral garland border with four narrative vignette scenes at the corners

Oil painting in an octagonal gold-bordered frame, surrounded by a floral border. A kneeling figure in white robes holds flowers at left, gazing upward at an apparition of a crowned woman in a blue starry mantle and rose-colored robe, surrounded by a mandorla with an angel below her feet. Landscape with hills and trees in the background.

Oil painting with gold-leafed octagonal frame and floral border. A crowned, haloed figure in blue mantle appears within a golden mandorla at upper right. At left, a kneeling man in white robes looks upward, accompanied by a winged angel in pink. Landscape with distant buildings below.

Oil painting set within an octagonal gold-bordered frame surrounded by a floral border. A kneeling figure in white robes gestures toward a standing man whose tilma displays an image of the Virgin of Guadalupe in blue and gold. A third figure stands behind, near a red curtain and stone arch.

Oil painting with an octagonal gold-bordered central panel surrounded by a painted floral border on blue ground. Inside, a crowned apparition in blue mantle and rose robe, encircled by golden rays and a crescent moon, appears above a kneeling landscape. At right, a standing figure in white and brown robes gestures upward toward the vision.

Oil painting detail showing a dense horizontal band of roses and mixed blooms in white, pink, red, gold, and blue-gray tones, below a scalloped white cloud form and golden-orange sky with radiating gilt rays.

Oil painting, devotional image of a standing figure in a blue star-studded mantle with gold trim and a golden crown, hands clasped in prayer, set against radiating golden rays on an amber background with floral clouds at the upper corners.

Oil painting detail of a winged cherub with arms raised, supporting a flowing mauve and gold-trimmed mantle; the figure has multicolored feathered wings in red, blue, and orange against a radiant golden background.

Oil painting detail showing an oval cartouche with gold border containing a townscape with church facades, colonnades, small figures, and horse-drawn carts set against rolling hills; above, spread wings in orange and blue-gray tones are partially visible.

Detail of an oil painting showing a classical architectural facade with tall columns and an obelisk, small figures of pedestrians and a horse-drawn carriage along a promenade, in muted brown tones with crackled surface; a gilded frame border and cursive inscription are visible at the lower edge.

Artist or Maker: Antonio de Torres
Mexico, 1667-1731
Title: Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgen de Guadalupe)
Date Made: circa 1720
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: Unframed: 81 1/2 × 55 1/8 in. (207 × 140 cm); framed: 89 × 62 1/2 × 2 1/2 in. (226 × 158.75 × 6.35 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Kelvin Davis through the 2014 Collectors Committee
Accession Number: M.2014.91
Classification: Paintings
Collecting Area: Latin American Art
Curatorial Notes: Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of the most reproduced images of the Christian world. This rendition by Antonio de Torres depicts the Virgin surrounded by four vignettes that narrate her appearances to the Indigenous commoner Juan Diego in 1531 at the Hill of Tepeyac, north of Mexico City. The scenes culminate in the miracle that imprinted her image on his cloak, which he unfolds before Bishop Juan de Zumárraga (r. 1528–47) as proof. According to tradition, the icon imprinted on Juan Diego’s cloak is the one venerated today at the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City.

To meet increasing demand for reputable copies of the Virgin’s titular image such as this one, the Mexican artist Juan Correa (c. 1645–1716) produced a waxed-paper template after the original image that enabled painters to accurately reproduce the design. This accounts for the similar dimensions of some copies (M.2009.61) despite variations of style and details. Here, the larger roundel at the Virgin’s feet depicts her new sanctuary completed in 1709. Images of the shrine began featuring in paintings even before the building was completed, revealing the growing importance of her devotion and the availability of good roads to access it.

Ilona Katzew

2024
Provenance: María de Gracia López de Tejada, Carmona, Spain, c. 1850; by descent to multiple family members; Carteia Fine Arts, Madrid, 2013; LACMA, 2014.
Selected Bibliography: Katzew, Ilona, ed. Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800: Highlights from LACMA’s Collection. Exh. Cat. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; New York: DelMonico Books/D.A.P., 2022.
Ilona Katzew, “New Acquisition: Antonio de Torres, Virgin of Guadalupe,” Unframed, May 1, 2014, https://unframed.lacma.org/2014/05/01/new-acquisition-antonio-de-torres-virgin-of-guadalupe.
Selected Exhibition History: Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 12, 2022 - October 30, 2022
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. October 20, 2023 - January 28, 2024
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 22, 2024 - September 08, 2024

Related Exhibitions

Related Unframed

Antonio de Torres
Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgen de Guadalupe)circa 1720

On view:

Geffen Galleries, floor 2

Artist or Maker: Antonio de Torres
Mexico, 1667-1731
Title: Virgin of Guadalupe (Virgen de Guadalupe)
Date Made: circa 1720
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: Unframed: 81 1/2 × 55 1/8 in. (207 × 140 cm); framed: 89 × 62 1/2 × 2 1/2 in. (226 × 158.75 × 6.35 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Kelvin Davis through the 2014 Collectors Committee
Accession Number: M.2014.91
Classification: Paintings
Collecting Area: Latin American Art
Curatorial Notes: Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of the most reproduced images of the Christian world. This rendition by Antonio de Torres depicts the Virgin surrounded by four vignettes that narrate her appearances to the Indigenous commoner Juan Diego in 1531 at the Hill of Tepeyac, north of Mexico City. The scenes culminate in the miracle that imprinted her image on his cloak, which he unfolds before Bishop Juan de Zumárraga (r. 1528–47) as proof. According to tradition, the icon imprinted on Juan Diego’s cloak is the one venerated today at the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City.

To meet increasing demand for reputable copies of the Virgin’s titular image such as this one, the Mexican artist Juan Correa (c. 1645–1716) produced a waxed-paper template after the original image that enabled painters to accurately reproduce the design. This accounts for the similar dimensions of some copies (M.2009.61) despite variations of style and details. Here, the larger roundel at the Virgin’s feet depicts her new sanctuary completed in 1709. Images of the shrine began featuring in paintings even before the building was completed, revealing the growing importance of her devotion and the availability of good roads to access it.

Ilona Katzew

2024
Provenance: María de Gracia López de Tejada, Carmona, Spain, c. 1850; by descent to multiple family members; Carteia Fine Arts, Madrid, 2013; LACMA, 2014.
Selected Bibliography: Katzew, Ilona, ed. Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800: Highlights from LACMA’s Collection. Exh. Cat. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; New York: DelMonico Books/D.A.P., 2022.
Ilona Katzew, “New Acquisition: Antonio de Torres, Virgin of Guadalupe,” Unframed, May 1, 2014, https://unframed.lacma.org/2014/05/01/new-acquisition-antonio-de-torres-virgin-of-guadalupe.
Selected Exhibition History: Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 12, 2022 - October 30, 2022
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. October 20, 2023 - January 28, 2024
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 22, 2024 - September 08, 2024