Image scanned/or photographed from transparency and color corrected by Pat Cagney.

Landing of Cortez in Mexico

Artist Frederick Kemmelmeyer (American, 1788 - 1816)

Dateca. 1800

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsOverall: 35 x 48 in. (88.9 x 121.9 cm)
Overall, Frame: 41 x 53 7/8 in. (104.1 x 136.8 cm)

ClassificationsAmerican art

Credit LineGift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch

Object number80.181.15

Terms

History
People
Water
Ships

On View

Not on view

DescriptionOil on canvas painting illustrating both natives and Cortez's men on the shoreline as ships sail approach from the right. The two groups are noticeably different by the absence or presence of clothing. The natives and the men of Cortez observe each other on shore; on the shore in the background a group of men clothed in white raise a large wooden cross. The shoreline has lush foliage, many palm trees and a mountain in the far distance. Row boats are in the foreground beside the shoreline and ships advance from the right in the distance. Cortez is in the front left of the canvas in a red cloak with white trim and an olive green garment underneath, talking to one of his men who stretches his arm outward, gesturing to the ships approaching.

Label TextFrederick Kemmelmeyer American, active 1788–1816 The Landing of Cortez in Mexico, ca. 1800 Oil on canvas Maryland painter Frederick Kemmelmeyer envisioned the arrival of Spanish colonizers in Mexico as a crowded mingling of bearded Europeans and nude natives. The European soldiers and monks have distinctive faces and attire that demonstrate their role and status. The locals, by contrast, are less individualized, mostly shown from behind and in identical postures. This repetition of bodies allowed the artist to build a complex historical scene despite his lack of skill in figure painting. Kemmelmeyer created similarly large and ambitious depictions of battles from the American Revolution. Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch 80.181.15