Guanajuato, Gto., November 22, 2018.- To a full auditorium in the Council Hall and surroundings, Master Dolores Elena Álvarez Gasca, a scholar of the University of Guanajuato (UG) presented "Vice regal Iconography", a work that contributes to decipher the meanings of the messages of the religious images and understand fundamental aspects of the culture's country.
More than a book, "Vice regal Iconography" is an object of art, said UG's President, Dr. Luis Felipe Guerrero Agripino, who announced that there will a digital edition of the book and they'll gather resources to have a color print, so we call appreciate the images on the book.
This work represents a trajectory and shows the author's passion for iconology. She has transmitted this to her students, with whom she has generously shared her vast knowledge for more than two decades.
On the matter, the Rector of Campus Guanajuato, Dr. Teresita de Jesús Rendón Huerta Barrera mentioned that this expected book emerged from the Alvarez Gasca's annotations for class, which she systematized during a sabbatical. It is a work that comes from the dedication, the passion, and a profound love for the topics it addresses, so she thanked the author "for approving the publication", as well as to the university authorities who supported the project.
In his comments, the UG researcher, Dr. Benjamín Valdivia, said that it is and expert book, that offers a detailed knowledge, but at the same time offers a general panorama. "Gathers the knowledge of art, the knowledge of history in which that art has a value and the knowledge of the doctrine in which that historic art has a sense".
The base of the Mexican culture is forged in the New Spain and understand what was being taught through those images is to understand the culture we still live today, understand why the classes are suspended in the secular educational system on December 12, she exemplified.
Dolores Elena Álvarez Gasca shared that when she was a little girl she was drawn by the images in the walls and statues "I wondered who they were and why there?", and she told how she discovered her passion for iconology by studying the Master's in Restoration of Sites and Monuments.
She mentioned that previous generations were capable of "reading" the religious images, however the current ones don't have the codes to do it, and with this in mind is written "Vice regal Iconography", which is at the same time a resume of courses she teaches as a scholar in the University of Guanajuato and other institutions.
Also, as a commentator, was Dr. María Guevara Sanginés, who thanked the author for sharing her wide knowledge about iconography, discipline that sets in context the images and allows to understand the stories and ideas that prevail in the moment an artistic work is created.
The event mustered students, ex-students, academic community, family and friends of the beloved M. Álvarez Gasca, who at the end of the event autographed the books given to the attendees.
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