Santo (St. Michael) Rendered by Margery Parish watercolor, colored pencil, and graphite on paper, 37 x 28.9 cm (14 9/16 x 11 3/8 in.) Index of American Design 1943.8.6974

From the Tour: Folk Arts of the Spanish Southwest from the Index of American Design
Object 9 of 25

Muted color schemes are typical of "retablos" in New Mexico. This "retablo," depicting Saint Michael, is painted on gesso over cottonwood. In keeping with most other "retablos," the design of this piece is flat and abstract in feeling; decorative motifs like the drapery are simplified. In these respects it is akin to a folk art style; the origins of this type of painting, however, go back to the numerous devotional images painted by followers of the seventeenth-century Spanish painter Murillo.

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