America

Entering the Royal San Carlos Academy in 1785, Patino Ixtolinque first took drawing classes and later devoted himself to sculpture, for which he requested a grant. A student, in 1791, of Manuel Tolsá, who had a strong influence on him, in 1817 he was afforded the rank of "honored academic", and, in 1824, appointed head of the sculpture department, later holding the position of director of the academy from 1826 to 1834. Together with Tolsá, he worked on the designs for the altars of the chapel attached to the Mexican Mint, the seat of the Jesuit Order in México known as the Casa Profesa, Saint Dominics Church, the sacristy of the Metropolitan Cathedral and the main altar of Puebla Cathedral, among other projects. America and Liberty are two of his most important works, both commissioned by Melchor Múzquiz, the Governor of the State of México, for the tomb of José María Morelos in Cuautla, which was never finished. Each of the female figures emerges from a single block following a winding line that leans to the right and left of its central axis as it runs up the body, thus endowing the work with a sumptuous movement accentuated by the folds of each matrons garments. The colossal proportions of the bodies and their attire are reminiscent of the Neoclassical tradition imposed by Tolsá. These works earned the artist, of mixed mestizo and Spanish descent, a place in the group of sculptors who adhered to the formal XVIIIth-century Academic canon and were spurred on to create innovative works by the need to produce patriotically uplifting art. It should be stressed that this was a period in which an increasing sense of independence prevailed, alongside a desire to purify and dignify the image of America. These works passed from the San Carlos Academy to the National San Carlos Museum, entering the MUNAL in 1987.