Circulation of religious art and artists of the Society of Jesus between Italy and the Viceroyalty of Perú (XVI-XVII century). Bernardo Bitti and followers

Elena Amerio, M.A.

In the last years, my research has been focusing on Jesuit art in the Viceroyalty of Peru between the XVIth and XVIIth centuries, especially concerning the figure of Bernardo Bitti. My PhD project expands my previous research, focusing on exchanges between Italy and the Viceroyalty of Peru, on the Jesuit policy of circulating artists from the order and their role in the diffusion of late-XVIth century artistic culture in Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia. Bitti's production and legacy are still at the center of my current investigation; however, I also seek to clarify his technique and relationship to other artists present in Peru with the aim of rethinking his role in Peruvian art history. In order to avoid the traditional view of an art history of “great masters” which overshadows a richer context of production, I also look to the role of other Jesuit artists, such as the Andalusian Pedro Vargas and the Neapolitan Giuseppe Avitabile. These three Jesuit brothers with different specialties (Bitti the painter, Vargas the gilder and Avitabile the engraver) complemented each other and together functioned as a team capable of meeting and adapting to the demands that the missionary context put on them, obligating them to learn the use of new materials and new