MARIANO GUERRERO

(Activo en el Virreinato de Nueva España, México, a finales del S. XVIII)

MARIANO GUERRERO (Active in the Viceroyalty of New Spain, Mexico, at the end of the 18th century) "The Virgin Mary as a Refuge for Sinners"

Oil on copper. Signed and dated at the bottom. Refugium Peccatorum, Refuge of Sinners, is one of the Roman Catholic titles given to the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose use dates back to Saint Germanus of Constantinople in the 8th century. It is one of the four Marian invocations of the Litany of Loreto, with Salus Infirmorum, Healer of the Sick, Consolatrix Afflictorum, Consoler of the Afflicted and Auxilium Christianorum, Help of Christians. All these Marian invocations come to extol her role as intercessor of men before God. Some religious orders, such as the Jesuits, spread this Marian invocation in the New World, multiplying its representations. A good example is this beautiful image by Mariano Guerrero in which Mary appears swaddling the Child Jesus and surrounded by flowers. This painter, active in Mexico at the end of the 18th century, specialized in this type of devotional paintings and in the execution of portraits such as that of Don Juan Lorenzo Gutierrez Altamirano de Velasco y Flores from the Brooklyn Museum. Measurements: 60 x 44 cm.