But the Viceroyalties of the Spanish Empire were up to the task and created a hierarchical system of race classifications that were condensed to categories which resemble mathematical equations that included more than thirty different combinations:
Although their original intent is still a bit ambiguous, the casta paintings can be interpreted as the visual manifestations of the caste system determined by the administrators of New Spain which were needed to control a heterogeneous population with fluid boundaries.
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| Anonymous, Museo Nacional del Virreinato, Tepotzotlán, Mexico, Public Domain |
Produced as a series of sixteen paintings or as a single canvas with sixteen vignettes, the first in the series is always the union of a Spaniard male and an Amerindian female with their offspring called a mestizo. A Spaniard and mestiza produce a castizo, and the list progressed all the way down to mixed races such as No te entiendo (I-Don’t-Understand-You) and an Amerindian producing Torna atrás (Return-Backwards). While the numbered and textually inscribed paintings created the impression of a hierarchically constructed, highly ordered society, the names given to the inter-ethnic, biracial individuals revealed the anxieties related to the mixed-race unions.
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Juan Patricio Morelte Ruiz,
X. From Spaniard and Return Backwards, Hold Yourself Suspended in Midair, ca. 1760 |
The casta paintings situated the individual's station in society according to their different values, trades, and environments. The Europeans, Españoles or the Peninsulares, are depicted in high social positions, inhabiting pleasant interiors, wearing fine clothing, and displaying elegant, restrained manners while the darker subjects tended to be set in public spaces sometimes wearing torn or little clothing with undisciplined and passionate gestures. The racial traits depicted were visual markers of the assumed difference between the 'civilized' and the 'uncivilized' people and a vital tool of exclusion that determined where they belonged socially, and legally in society. ![]() |
Attributed to José de Ibarra
Mexican Indians, ca. 1730
The woman in the humble family group wears a hupil (native blouse) over a striped petticoat.* |
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Attributed to José de Ibarra
Barbarian Indians, ca. 1730
Stereotype of the indigenous population who did not convert to Christianity was depicted as wild and dangerous.* |
White identity politics using racial stereotypes, to discriminate and exclude 'the other' have been upholding the status quo for centuries, not only in America but globally. Even though we use the word 'race' all the different variants of religion, ethnicity and culture have been confluenced with race to create the racist narratives of today's populist politicians. Ironically, concurrently with the rise in racist and exclusionary politics, scientists are arguing that
the concept of race is a social construct and it should not be used as agents of genetic diversity. So how is the supremacy of the white race to be substantiated if it does not even exist? Also, if they do decide to Make America Great (White) Again by keeping 'the others' out, how will they determine who has the 'purity of blood'? A simple DNA test may reveal that the cantankerous uncle or the racist neighbor may be more closely related to the unwanted 'other' for comfort. These are the things to consider before deciding to create hierarchies of color, ethnicity, and religion in today's societies. For those who are still not convinced, I want to share a contemporary work that talks back to white identity politics in the most wonderfully concise way - The Humanae Project.
Angélica Dass is a Brazilian photographer whose work, Humanae Project, is a subversive response to the idea of categorizing people according to their color, and for the sake of my argument,
casta paintings. In her ongoing project, Dass photographed more than 3000 people of a kaleidoscope of colors from 14 different countries. She matches each person to a Pantone Color and takes a photo of their face that demonstrates how unique each individual is. When asked why she chose the face as opposed to another body part, she replies that the face changes color according to our health, what we consume or even the climate. She asks:
Why do we continue discussing the color of 'the other' if our own color changes?
I don't think I need to say anymore. Dass' work does not require any prior knowledge or interpretation - it speaks for itself.
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| Angélica Dass, the Politics of Color |
