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| The Virgin Mary in Cuenca’s Art |
Cuenca is a city with a strong religious
influence. Proof of this is the amount of churches, monasteries
and extensive collections of religious art found in the city.
The Virgin Mary has a strong presence in Cuenca and its people
are very devoted to Her.
On a recent trip to Cuenca, I had the opportunity to share
some time with Dr. Juan Cordero Iñiguez, author of
María en las Artes Cuencanas (Universidad de Cuenca,
2004). Dr. Juan Cordero is the ex-Director of the Azuay Universtiy
and ex Minister of Education and Culture. He is the director
of the Cordero Foundation, which owns a private museum that
is open to the public.
What is the importance of the Virgin Mary in Cuenca´s
history?
Cuenca was destined to be a "Mariana" city, as
it received a coat of arms of the Peru Virreinato with a legend
that read "Primero Dios y después Vos" (God
First and then You), which refers to the Virgin Mary. Thus,
it was taken that the city was dedicated to Her. This happened
during the Spanish foundation of Cuenca in 1557.
On December 8th 1854, the Pope Pio IX proclamation the dogmas
of the Immaculate Conception. This proclamation was celebrated
throughout Ecuador, and some think that the devotion of the
people from Cuenca was strengthened with this event. Fifty
years later, a monument of "The Bronce Immaculate Virgin"
was built at the feet of the Turi hill, together with a chapel
and a small plaza. Also in 1904 Dr. Honorato Vasquez promoted
a Literary Contest of Poetry and Prose, and started to publish
the poems in a book called "May Roses" every year
during that month.
Why do you think there is so much devotion for the Virgin
Mary in Cuenca?
Probably because of the communities of the Religious Cloisters,
who still worship the Virgin and preserve their customs intact.
The devotion and religiousness of people from Cuenca are
only in the museums, or can you still feel and live it?
People from Cuenca are still very religious. Especially in
the month of May, which is dedicated to the Virgin, one can
sense a special devotedness.
What is your book about?
My book tells the history of the art works on the Virgin
Mary. The paintings and sculptures that came from Spain to
Quito and then to Cuenca represent the different stages of
the Virgin’s life, from her birth to her Ascention to
Heaven. The Immaculate Virgin has many representations.
How long did the investigation take you?
The investigation was a personal commitment with the directors
of the Cuenca University, who asked me to publish them. I
traveled to Madrid, Spain, to study the American history and
on my return I continued investigating. Finally, the book
was published in the past May.
Which is the sculpture / painting of
the Virgin that is displayed at your book’s cover and
where is it?
The Virgin on the cover of my book is called "May Virgin".
It is a sculpture-painting that is now located at the El Carmen
Convent. One needs a permit of the Archbishop to visit this
convent.
The art piece is a wonderful assemblage that has a golden
urn that is carved in wood, in Baroque style, and inside are
the Virgin Mary and Jesus.
The nuns that live in the convent have decorated the sculpture
with pearls, beads, precious stones, silver filigree, necklaces,
jewelry, among other details. Moreover, the Virgin is wearing
earrings, necklaces and rings that are typical from Cuenca.
The child’s hair is a laborious embroidery made by the
nuns with silk thread.
How would you define Cuenca?
Cuenca is an optimist city ever since it was declared World
Cultural Heritage Site by the Unesco. It stands out as the
cultural capital of Ecuador for its architecture, art pieces,
sculptures, paintings and also because of its poetry. The
architecture that came from Europe in the XVIII and XIX Centuries
is very well preserved in the city.
The main attractions in Cuenca are its architecture and its
ecology. Worth visiting are the churches, the Banco Central
Museum, the religious museums and, with a permit, the religious
convents and cloisters. In the ecology the highlights are
the nearby Cajas National Park and the Mazan Forest.
Doctor Juan Cordero is the Director of the Cordero Foundation.
This Foundation owns a private collection that includes:
1. Native Cultures Museum (5.000 archeological pieces)
2. G.H. Mata Library : Mata is a writer from Quito who lived
in Cuenca. This library contains 36.000 books, it is probably
the biggest private library in the city of Cuenca.
3. The Luis Cordero Historic Archive, with documents from
the XVI to the XIXth Century.
The museum was created with didactical purposes, to instruct
college students about the cultures that inhabited what is
now Ecuador. In 1992, when we celebrated the V Century of
the "Encounter of Two Worlds", it was open to the
public as a homage to the native Ecuadorian peoples in their
15.000 years of existence. It is a didactical museum and has
Spanish, English and German guides. It’s divided in
15 moments of the Ecuadorian archeology. It has a café-bar
called "Amerindia".
Interview with Dr. Juan Cordero Iñiguez
By: Gustavo Vallejo P.
Article © by This is Ecuador Magazine
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