Attributed to Bernardo Legarda (Quito circa 1700 - 1773)

Attributed to Bernardo Legarda (Quito circa 1700 - 1773) ‘Saint Joseph and Virgin Mary’. Pair of carved and polychrome wood sculptures with vitreous eyes. Belonging to a nativity scene.  28 x 16 x 10 cm. and 30 x 16 x 12 cm. Wonderful example of the baroque sculpture from Quito. The sculptor presents us with the Virgin and Saint Joseph humanized and with a serene expression full of spirituality. Bernardo Legada, sculptor and painter of enormous talent, stood out as one of the most important artists of the Viceroyalty of Ecuador. Like other indigenous art imagers, he dedicated himself solely to sacred art. Among his most important works is the main altarpiece of the Church of La Merced in Quito, as well as the altarpiece of the Temple of the Jesuits. Wonderful treatment of the flesh tones, with the characteristic polychrome of the faces that looks like porcelain. The decoration of the habit is a delightful brush composition of polychrome flowers and fine gold latticework. Some of Legarda's important works are, for example, the Calvary found in the Convent of Santo Domingo in Quito, the Virgin of Quito which is in the main altar of the church of San Francisco and is the only work that has the signature of the author, Our Lady of the Assumption of Popayán, preserved in the Cathedral of Popayán, Colombia, a San Juan de Dios of the Convent of Santo Domingo in Quito, or the Calvary of the Chapel of Cantuña, in Quito. He is also the architect of the altarpieces Retablo Mayores de la Iglesia del Monasterio del Carmen Bajo and de la Iglesia la Merced both in Quito, or of the Retablo del Presbiterio de la Iglesia la Compañía. Bibliography of reference: - "Escuela quiteña: principales exponentes y su legado en el arte ecuatoriano. Plan de difusión cultural”. Estupiñán Ordóñez Doris Amelia. P. 187, nº 48.