Baroque and Beyond C. 1600–1850

Art of the Americas

What were the dominant styles of architecture in the Spanish New World?

In Spanish Latin American, baroque styles of architecture remained popular long after it had fallen out of fashion in Europe. Throughout the eighteenth century, magnificent examples of baroque architecture continued to be built in countries such as Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, and even further afield in the Philippines. The Church of Saints Sebastian and Santa Prisco, in Taxco de Alarcon, Mexico, is a good example of an eighteenth-century baroque church heavily decorated in stucco sculpture in a popular style known as the “Churrigueresque.” Near Tucson, Arizona, the Mission San Xavier del Bac was also built in the eighteenth century and reflected Spanish baroque styles. The nearly one-hundred-foot long church was built using brick and mortar, rather than adobe, which was commonly used by the native people of Arizona.



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