"Highest Heaven" a story of Faith & Culture in South America, 6-11

At the San Antonio Museum of Art

Attributed to Cristóbal Lozano (Peruvian, 1705-1776)
Rosa de Salazar y Gabiño, Countess of Monteblanco and Montemar,
1764-1771
Oil on canvas, Roberta and Richard Huber Collection
Photograph by Graydon Wood, Philadelphia Museum of Art 

Highest Heaven Tells Story of Expansion of Faith and Culture in South America during Colonial Rule.

Features More than 100 Paintings, Sculpture, Furniture, Ivories, and Silverwork
Several Works on Display for First Time, June 11th–September 14th, 2016.

Highest Heaven, opening at the San Antonio Museum of Art on June 11th, explores the art of the high plains, or Altiplano, of South America in the 18th century. The Altiplano stretches from northern Argentina to the flatlands of Peru. The exhibition tells the story of the role of art in establishing new city centers in the Colonial Empire, and propagating the Christian faith among indigenous peoples. 

It highlights the distinct visual language created by the cultural and creative exchanges that occurred between Spain and Portugal and their South American colonies “Highest Heaven explores not only the aesthetic beauty of this art, but
also the significant role that it played in the cultural, religious, and social lives of these peoples,” said Katie Luber, The Kelso Director.

“We look forward to engaging our community with this work, which we think will have particular meaning here.”

The exhibition, which is drawn exclusively from the distinguished collection of Roberta and Richard Huber, includes more than 100 works, among them paintings, sculptures, furniture, ivories, and silverworks. Several pieces have never before been seen in a museum exhibition.

In contrast to other areas of Spanish colonial scholarship, such as New Spain (present-day Southwestern United States, Mexico, and Central America), much less is known about the artists, workshop practices, and even the names of South American artists. “Collectors are often the first to blaze the trail of
discovery, and then the scholarship follows. A show like Highest Heaven opens up avenues of investigation,” said Luber.

Highest Heaven: Spanish and Portuguese Colonial Art from the Roberta and Richard Huber Collection is organized by the San Antonio Museum of Art, travels to the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California in October, and to the Worcester Art Museum in Worcester, Massachusetts in March 2017.