After Columbus landed on Hispaniola in 1492, items from the Americas were shipped to Europe where they were perceived as exotic items of wonder and fascination.
New Spain: c. 1521 – 1821
Built by Catholic monks to convert the indigenous population, these spaces combined pre-Hispanic and European forms.
Mission churches as theaters of conversion in ...
Why are these murals in the cloister of Acolman painted in only black and white?
Murals from New Spain, San Agustín de ...
The Conceptionists were founded for elite, pure-blooded Spanish women. This nun just took her vows.
Crowned Nun Portrait of Sor María de ...
The beguiling—and tragic—story of the Carvajal family of crypto-Jews, is illuminated by the manuscripts Luis made.
The manuscripts of Luis de Carvajal
The original image of the Virgin of Guadalupe was miraculously produced—this mother-of-pearl version was man-made.
Miguel González, The Virgin of Guadalupe
A continuous narrative, this shows three different parts of the story, each in a different part of the landscape.
Baltasar de Echave Ibía, The Hermits
The Spanish reused the stones of pagan temples to build their new capital atop the Aztec city, Tenochtitlan.
New Spain, an introduction
This screen offers an idealized bird’s eye view of Mexico City on one side, and depicts the Conquest on the other.
Biombo with the Conquest of Mexico and ...
Cabrera fancied himself the Michelangelo of Mexico, but chose to borrow the format and iconography of Rubens.
Miguel Cabrera, Virgin of the Apocalypse
The convento atrium was a place for preaching. This cross taught new converts about Christianity.
Atrial Cross at Acolman
This remarkable object takes its subject from European prints, but was made by an indigenous artist.
Featherworks: The Mass of St. Gregory
This multimedia architectural altarpiece took two decades to complete, and required teams of workers in many media.
Jerónimo de Balbás, Altar of the Kings (Altar ...
Japanese objects came through Mexico on their way to Spain, and had a lasting impact on the arts of the New World.
Screen with the Siege of Belgrade and ...
This mesa in New Mexico is believed to hold one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in the US.
Mission Church, San Esteban del Rey, Acoma ...
Casta paintings were colonial Mexico’s version of 23andMe—but come from a place of social and racial anxiety.
Spaniard and Indian Produce a Mestizo, attributed ...
Sor Juana is seated in front of books from her own library, and with implements alluding to her status as a writer.
Miguel Cabrera, Portrait of Sor Juana Inés ...
Created as a teaching tool, this twelve-volume encyclopedia was made by a Franciscan friar and Nahua collaborators.
Bernardino de Sahagún and collaborators, Florentine Codex
These murals were part of an aggressive campaign to eradicate native beliefs and enforce religious conformity.
The Convento of San Nicolás de Tolentino, ...
Indigenous artists made it. A priest annotated it. But the king in Spain never received it.