Selected by the New York Times as one of the best art books of 2017

- 2018 Margaret Arvey Book Award (Association for Latin America Art)—Honorable Mention.
- 2018 Eleanor Tufts Book Award (American Society of Hispanic Art Historical Studies)—Honorable Mention.

Painted in Mexico, 1700–1790: Pinxit Mexici represents the first serious effort to reposition the history of 18th-century Mexican painting, a highly vibrant period marked by major stylistic changes and the invention of new iconographies. Exquisitely illustrated with never-before-published artworks, the book provides a broad view of the connections of Mexican painting with transatlantic artistic trends and emphasizes its own internal developments and remarkable pictorial output.

During this time painters were increasingly asked to create mural-size paintings to cover the walls of sacristies, choirs, staircases, cloisters, and university halls among others. Significantly, the same artists also produced portraits, casta paintings (depictions of racial mixing), folding screens, and finely rendered devotional images, attesting to their extraordinary versatility. The book’s essays address the tradition and innovation of Mexican painting, the mobility of pictures within and outside the viceroyalty, the political role of images, and the emphasis on ornamentation. There are over 130 catalogue entries that offer new and authoritative interpretations.

This publication is issued on the occasion of the exhibition Painted in Mexico, 1700–1790: Pinxit Mexici on view at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art from November 19, 2017 through March 18, 2018. Edited by Ilona Katzew with contributions by Luisa Elena Alcalá, Jaime Cuadriello, Ronda Kasl, Ilona Katzew, and Paula Mues Orts.

LACMA's blog Unframed has a video about the making of this publication, it features some of the stunning images seen in the book. .

This publication is also available in Spanish.

- Hardcover
- 512 pages, 10 x 12 x 2 inches
- 280 color illustrations
- 2017