Highest Heaven: Spanish and Portuguese Colonial Art

Highest Heaven explores a time when art flourished in the Iberian colonial possessions of the Altiplano (high plains) of South America, which stretch from northern Argentina to Peru. 

Through approximately 107 paintings, sculptures, ivories, objects in silver, and furniture, the exhibition traces the development and spread of the Catholic faith through the creation and use of religious art for devotion and instruction. The objects are drawn from the distinguished collection of Roberta and Richard Huber of New York City, built over the course of three decades.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website

IMAGE left: Saint Michael the Archangel (Peruvian, Cuzco, 18th century) Oil on canvas 79 1/8 x 61 in. (200 x 154.9 cm) Roberta and Richard Huber Collection Photograph by Graydon Wood, Philadelphia Museum of Art

IMAGE right: Dominican Altar of Our Lady of the Rosary with Christ Child (Peruvian, late 17th– early 18th century) Oil on canvas 63 x 44 7/8 inches (160 x 113.9 cm) Roberta and Richard Huber Collection Photograph by Bruce Schwarz