Juan Bautista Curis’s Portrait of Christ

An essay by Lauren Dedmon

An Artist's Magnificent Pair

Juan Bautista Curis created his piece, Portrait of Christ, in the 1590s as part of a pair of feather mosaics depicting the sorrow of the Virgin Mary and the young Jesus. This piece is unique in the sense that it is signed by the artist, but also in the way that it uses the feathers to create words in general. [1] The words serve the dual purpose of artistically framing the subjects, and the biblical context surrounding their representation. Surrounding the Virgin Mary are words that express her sorrow over the youthful Jesus slipping away to the temple during the night, while the words surrounding Jesus quote his response recorded in the biblical story, “How is it that you have sought me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” [2] The artistic choice of depicting Christian motifs with the indigenous style of feather painting is one that achieves many meanings and has been a fascinating topic of discussion among those who study the colonial era.

The piece was crafted from many small bird feathers in a mosaic-type technique, which was a Pre-Columbian art form that continued to flourish after the conquests due to the unique and "exotic'' beauty it held. Because of the medium that was used, these colors can change depending on where the viewer is standing, giving a sense of life and movement to the piece. The feathers reflect light and take on the look of stained glass, which gives the piece a very different overall impression than it would have if this were just paint on a canvas. It captivates the viewer and then their attention is kept through the use of the other bright, shimmering colors that make up Jesus himself.

The Art of Featherworking

Creating a featherwork involved a very intentional process that requires great skill. The feathers used were diverse in size, color, and origin, which adds to the formal quality of texture seen in the piece. Each one was arranged and attached in a way that would add to the overall movement of the piece, [3] as seen most prominently in the background of Jesus. The carefully placed hummingbird feathers of varied color provide a sense of movement as the mosaic responds to the light hitting it. The feathers, plucked from birds such as the bald eagle, quetzal, yellow parrot, and blue cotinga, were individually fastened with either glue or thread and were sometimes painted in order to perfect their tone. [4] For example, Bautista-Curis utilizes different tones in order to create the illusion of form in the face by using feathers with slightly darker tones to create a shadowing effect. Although this is a fairly 2-dimensional piece, there is still an element of realism present because of the artist’s attention to detail. One can even see the crease in the eye, the “adam’s apple” in the neck, and shadowing under the lip that makes the portrait look not only more 3-dimensional, but more realistic. The use of different tones and wavy lines both contribute to the illusion of a ruffled cloak, which also adds dimensionality to the piece.

The Significance of the Feather

The art of feather working was well-established in Pre-Colombian Mesoamerica and is very much connected with the worldview and religious beliefs of the Mexica. It is likely that the use of feathers in this piece is much more than an aesthetically pleasing medium that adds to the formal qualities of color and texture. Instead, the feathers may provide symbolic meaning to the image that informs the transformation and incorporation of Indigenous worldview with Spanish Christianization. Nature and religion were inseparable parts of Aztec worldview, which is why feathers were key in transforming goods or people into sacred entities. [5] Feathers were considered “precious.” as noted in the Florentine Codex, [6] and many native cultures believed that covering a chosen person in feathers transformed the person into birds so that they can serve as intermediaries between the human and spiritual realm. [7] In addition, the feathers were also considered precious based on the meaning of the bird itself and the significance of its geographic location to the culture. [8] For example, one of the origin stories of the Mexica involves seeing an eagle perched on a cactus, which signified the location that their empire should be built. The significance of the feather in Mesoamerican religion and its use later on in Christianity-themed featherworks can thus be seen as an example of cultural continuity after the Spanish Conquest. This is particularly prominent in the artist’s depiction of the Virgin Mary, where the cherubs at each of her four corners are shown with colorful wings, pointing to the indigenous identity of the artist. [9]

The idea of feathers being sacred takes on a new form with the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors and their efforts to forcefully Christianize the indigenous people. This transformation would include merging iconographies and shared visual language between European and indigenous culture. It is unclear why the Spanish, who were fixated on destroying any image that pre-dated their spiritual conquest, would support the use of featherworks to create religious pieces, however, one can assume that there was some form of significance to Christian visual culture that inspired both groups to associate feathers with the divine. [10] One theory is that the missionaries approved of the use of feathers in religious art because of its pagan references to ritual sacrifice as they tried to teach the idea of the Eucharist, and Christ becoming the ultimate sacrifice. [11] An example of this is seen in The Mass of St. Gregory featherwork, which includes Christian iconography to convey the idea of transubstantiation while retaining elements of indigenous style. The featherwork is likely an adaptation from a drawing, but there are added elements in the featherwork like floating heads, and pineapples, which do not grow in Europe where the scene was originally created.

Conclusion

The overall impression of Juan Bautista Curis's Portrait of Jesus is awe-inspiring and ethereal because of the way that small, individual feathers were used together to create a bright and colorful mosaic. It contributes to our understanding of Latin American art by providing a tangible example of two different cultures with different worldviews meeting for the first time. Indigenous style was both preserved and changed in order to make sense of forced conversions by the Spanish through the use of feather mosaics that had multiple meanings. This piece can be viewed at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, Austria, where it is currently on display.

[1] Pierce, Gomar, Bargellini. Painting a New World Mexican Art and Life: 1521-1821, 102

[2] Yturbide Teresa Castelló, and Manuel Cortina Portilla. The Art of Featherwork in Mexico,.

[3] Riedler, Renée, Ellen Pearlstein, and Molly Gleeson. "Featherwork: Beyond decorative." Studies in Conservation 57, no. sup1 (2012): S244-S249.

[4]General History of the Things of New Spain: Florentine Codex.

[5] Bassett, Molly H. “Animals and Aztec Religion: Keepers and Cultivators of Nature.” Religion Compass 12, no. 5-6 (2018).

[6]General History of the Things of New Spain: Florentine Codex.

[7] Riedler, Renée, Ellen Pearlstein, and Molly Gleeson. "Featherwork: Beyond decorative." Studies in Conservation57, no. sup1 (2012): S244-S249.

[8] Magaloni-Kerpel, Diana. "Real and Illusory Feathers: Pigments, painting techniques, and the use of color in ancient Mesoamerica." New World New Worlds (2006).

[9] Pierce, Gomar, Bargellini. Painting a New World Mexican Art and Life: 1521-1821, 105

[10] Russo, Alessandra. "Plumes of Sacrifice: Transformations in Sixteenth-Century Mexican Feather Art." RES: Anthropology and Aesthetics, no. 42 (2002): 226-50.

[11] Russo, Alessandra. "Plumes of Sacrifice: Transformations in Sixteenth-Century Mexican Feather Art." RES: Anthropology and Aesthetics, no. 42 (2002): 226-50.