Figural Urn, Zapotec, 500 C.E. Clay and pigment, 21 x 11 x 12 inches (53.34 x 27.94 x 30.48 cm). The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Gift of Estelle and Morton Sosland, 73-40.
This fall and winter, the vibrant art of Mesoamerica is coming to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Painted Worlds: Color and Culture in Mesoamerican Art explores the materials and meanings of works of art created by Indigenous artists, past and present, from Mesoamerica, a region that encompasses Mexico and much of Central America. Showcasing over 3,000 years of artistic production, Painted Worlds will enthrall visitors with boldly painted ceramics, glistening murals, intricate weavings, detailed carvings and colorful codices. This exhibition, our first Mesoamerican exhibition in 40 years at the Nelson-Atkins, includes works of art from Mexico, Europe and the United States, including 30 works from the Nelson-Atkins collection, like the Zapotec Figural Urn, shown above.
Painted Worlds examines Mesoamerican art through the lens of color. Although they spoke many languages and developed diverse cultures, ancient Mesoamericans shared a common worldview and many beliefs and practices. They organized their universe in five directions (north, south, east, west and center) and three layers (underworld, earth and heavens). This sacred cosmos was animated and given color by the sun. In Nahua sacred histories, the birthplace of the sun is called Tlapallan, “place of colors.” Many Mesoamerican cultures believed the sun was born at Teotihuacán, the sacred temple site and city northeast of Mexico City. Fittingly, visitors to Painted Worlds will begin their color-filled journey at the great Sun Pyramid, which greets them at the entrance of the exhibition.
Along with the sacrality of color, Painted Worlds also explores the history and science of color. Indigenous artists explored their natural world, manipulated materials and invented brilliant pigments and dyes. Many of these materials were unknown outside of Mesoamerica. Fortunately, Indigenous Nahua artists and scholars created an encyclopedia about their world in the 1570s known as the Florentine Codex. Information recorded in the Florentine Codex informs our understanding of Mesoamerican art and history throughout the exhibition. Visitors will also have the rare opportunity to see the Codex Laud (Codex Mictlan). Dating to the 1400s-early 1500s, this richly painted folding book is one of only about 15 surviving pre-Hispanic books — the Codex Laud is lent by Bodleian Library at Oxford. This precious object rarely travels, and it is an important highlight of a fascinating exhibition. I hope you will join us this fall and winter to experience Painted Worlds for yourself.
–Kimberly Masteller, Jeanne McCray Beals Curator of South and Southeast Asian Art at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
