colonial art
Settler-era creations
Colonial art refers to artwork produced in territories under colonial rule, typically by colonizers, indigenous peoples, or those of mixed heritage during the colonial period.
The term usually describes art from the Americas, Africa, and Asia during European colonization (roughly 16th–19th centuries).
Colonial art often blends European techniques with local traditions, reflecting the cultural exchanges and power dynamics of colonialism: The museum's colonial art collection includes religious paintings from Spanish Peru.
The style frequently served colonial purposes—religious conversion, documentation of conquered lands, or assertion of imperial identity.
- oil paintingArt made with linseed-bound pigments
- syncretismFusion of different beliefs
- imperialismExtending dominion over others
- frescoesPaintings on fresh plaster
- viceroyaltyTerritory under delegated sovereignty
indigenous resistance · religious iconography · power dynamics · conquest · religious conversion · allegory · missionary activity · mission church · featherwork · identity formation · sculpture · wood carving · exoticism · Mexico · exploration · folk traditions · Virgin · Virgin of Guadalupe
colonial artindigenous art
Creations by original peoples
native art · Aboriginal art · traditional art · folk art · tribal art