Small Pantry with Bread, a Bottle and a Glass of Wine

In relation to Mexican art history, only a select minority of artworks showcase the illusionistic quality of oil painting in its full grandeur and the above painting titled "Small Pantry with Bread, a Bottle and a Glass of Wine" is a fine example. Painted in the mid 18th century by Antonio Perez de Aguilar, the painting is among the very few works that have been securely attributed to him. In the long list of obscure Mexican practitioners, Aguilar occupies a significant position due to the enchanting nature of his art. The painter develops this character by making use of several devices, the most prominent being the French technique known as "Trompe l'oeil" which literally translates to "deceive the eye". It creates a realistic optical illusion of a three dimensional space occupied by voluminous objects on a flat, two dimensional surface. This, it achieves by utilising linear perspective, and vanishing points to trick the brain into seeing depth where none exists. It also relies on a consistent treatment of light and shadow in order to paint accurate highlights that emerge due to a unified light source. The brushstrokes are essential as well, as their detectability can undo the effect of realism. This technique has ancient origins as it is found in Greek and Roman murals, including walls uncovered in Pompeii. Later renaissance masters like Andrea Mantegna and Andrea Pozzo engaged with this technique while painting fake architectural domes and skies on flat ceilings. Visible in this particular piece, Aguilar's still-life style employs a restrained colour palette which fills a simple, ordinary composition having a frontal view. Although the painting depicts typical mundane pantry items, the subject has a broader significance within 18th century colonial Mexican society. The visual culture of this era frequently recorded the material culture surrounding food, as bread, wine, vessels, equipment and other domestic objects could convey information about social status, consumption and cultural exchange, providing a direct glimpse into the lives of people. Aguilar's work is especially significant because relatively few colonial Mexican still-life artworks survive. His 'Alacena' or 'Cupboard' and related pantry paintings therefore provide valuable evidence for understanding how Mexican artists adapted and appropriated European still-life conventions to the objects, foodways and the multicultural tangible environment of colonial Mexico.