Rubens 1612
Date2005
MediumKodalith, gold leaf, resin, metal lightbox, bulbs, and metal sheet
Dimensions41 1/2 × 41 1/2 × 4 7/8 inches (105.4 × 105.4 × 12.4 cm)
Credit LineGift of Jason and Clara Stevens.
Object number2022.4.a-.c
Copyright© Luis González Palma.
The images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextLuis González Palma gained recognition for his sepia-toned photo-graphic portraits that interrogate the cultural identity of indigenous Mayans and the mestizo people of his native Guatemala. Despite the conspicuous absence of a figure in this photograph, Rubens 1612 may also be described as a portrait.
The photograph belongs to La Luz de la Mente (The Light of the Mind) series, in which Palma commissioned Guatemalan weavers to recreate different loincloths based off old master’s paintings of the crucifixion of Jesus. Palma then painstakingly positioned and photographed the cloths, in this case creating a tribute to the mastery of 17th-century Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens. The use of gold leaf, the Kodalith process that generates strong contrasts, and the image’s placement in a light box dramatically spotlight the absence of Jesus’ body, and the image speaks to the mechanisms of spirituality and Christian iconography.
![Untitled [#2184]](/internal/media/dispatcher/13029/thumbnail)
