Castas: portraits of families from the Americas

One of the more obvious differences between the colonial expansion of Spain and that of its European neighbors was the assimilation of the various indigenous local ethnicities into the settlers' culture to produce a new and heterogeneous society. The documentation of the ethnographic history of the new lands was most successful during the Enlightment. One of the by-products of this scientific spirit in the New World was the artistic production of the Castas, intimate portraits of family life in the Americas depicting members of the various ethnic backgrounds and their offspring. Because of the variety and type of Castas proceeding from Spain, one is inclined to think these were painted for Spaniards returning to Europe, perhaps as a memento of their experience in the New World.