Marcos Zapata

Marcos Zapata (c. 1710–1773), also called Marcos Sapaca Inca, was a Peruvian painter, known for combining Christian stories with indigenous culture. The most famous example being The Last Supper (c.1753), which represents the famous New Testament story, but with the incorporation of Andean foods such as Cuy. The themes are primarily Christian subjects meant for churches in Peru and Chile. Zapata introduced elements from his own lands into his paintings. For instance, his 1753 rendering of the Last Supper shows Jesus and his twelve disciples gathering around a table laid with guinea pig and glasses of chicha. Guinea pigs, native to Peru and a culinary delicacy, play a significant role in Andean culture. They are used in Inca festivals as sacrificial animals, much like how lambs are used in traditional Christian ceremonies. In the painting, traditional elements like bread and ceremonial cups are joined by native foods such as potato, rocoto relleno, and corn. The blending of Andean culinary tradition with Christianity is a common theme in Cuzco paintings, especially as the painting's background features Christ on the Cross and Mary figures.

Between 1748 and 1764, Zapata painted at least 200 works. 24 of them portrayed the life of Saint Francis of Assisi for the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin of Santiago, Chile. He painted 50 linen cloths with the Laurentina Litany for the Cathedral of Santo Domingo, Cusco. Red and blue were prominent colors in his palette.

His influential style developed between 1748 and 1773; The themes are primarily Christian subjects meant for churches in Peru and Chile. He is known for his beautiful portraits of the Virgin Mary, almost always surrounded by cherubim. Zapata incorporated allegorical subjects in his Madonnas. Christoph Thomas Scheffler wrote in 1732, that the painter was inspired by prints of the subject. His compositions are didactic, with a relatively simple reading of complex theological concepts. What made it stand out was the vast amount of work that was produced under the names of those were associated with it. Marcos Zapata was in said to be charge during the late eighteenth century.

Select artworks

The Last Supper, c.1753

Currently in the Cuzco Cathedral, it is a large oil painting that is attributed to Marcos Zapata. or a viscacha, also traditionally associated with sacrifice. Tour guides at the Cuzco Cathedral have also suggested that instead of wine, the beverage depicted is chicha. Combining aspects of both native culture and European religion was used to create a unique connection for the natives of the region to the new ideas that were being brought in.

El rey Salomón (King Solomon), c. 1764 207 x 166 cm, oil painting attributed to Marcos Zapata. Notable for it use of Vermillion pigments, uncommon at the time due to the materials used to mix it being rare.

Exhibitions

Featuring "Virgen de la Silla with the graduation of the García brothers" Lima Art Museum. September 2015 – Present [Art to learn] Portraits: Identity, memory and power Telefónica Foundation Center, Lima. August–October 2007 "Decorative Arts of Spain and Spanish America," Toledo Museum of Art, November 2–30, 1930 "Paintings & Decorative Art of XVI and XVII-Century Peru Collected by Mrs. Frank Freyer," Brooklyn Museum of Art, December 20, 1930 - September 30, 1931 Catholic University of America, Washington D.C., 1931-1939 "Loan Exhibition of Latin American and Pre-Columbian Art, "Institute of Latin American Studies, University of Michigan, July 7–25, 1939 "Three Southern Neighbors - Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia," Newark Museum, April 14-December 31, 1942 "The Frank Barrows Freyer Collection of Spanish-Peruvian Paintings," Lowe Art Gallery, University of Miami, November 14, 1961 – January 28, 1962 "Treasures from Peru: Spanish Colonial Paintings from the School of Cuzco," Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts, 1967 "The Frank Barrows Freyer Collection of Spanish Peruvian Paintings in the Denver Art Museum," The High Museum of Art, December 7–29, 1969.

Collections

Collections featuring Virgen de la Silla with the graduation of the García brothers

The Lima Art Museum -Colonial and Featured Works

Collections featuring Adoration of the Magi

Denver Art Museum -Latin American Art