Iglesia de Orosi from the portfolio "Grabados en Madera"

Teodorico Quiros

A woodcut from the portfolio "Grabados en Madera" published and printed in Costa Rica in 1934 by the Imprenta Nacional, San Jose. It included woodcuts in various woods by Costa Rican artists: Francisco Amighetti, Francisco Zuniga, Manuel de la Cruz Gonzales, Carlos M. Salazar Herrera, Gilbert Laporte, Theodorico Quiros and Adolfo Saenz. The portfolio was done in an anticipated edition of 300 (this being from #79) and each print was signed in ink by the artist. There was a preface to the portfolio by Abelardo Bonilla which was printed autographically. These works are quite rare.

A depiction of the 18th century Catholic parish known as Iglesia de Orosi, or the Church of Orosi, located in the Cartago Province in Costa Rica. The oldest Spanish Colonial structure in the country, it was built by Franciscan friars in 1767. It now holds a museum of religious art and was declared an historic building in 1985. The architecture features the signature minimal style of the Spanish Colonial era, hallmarked by adobe walls and clean, simple lines. Here, it is captured in a small woodcut by noted Costa Rican artist Toedorico Quiros, also known as Teodorico Quiros Alvarado.

Prior to the arrival of the Spanish colonizers in the 17th century, the land which the church occupies was the home of the Huetar tribe. The landscape currently embodies much of the feeling it had pre-colonization, with lush, rolling hillsides and valleys. In this woodcut, part of the portfolio of works by Costa Rican artists published to promote the works of its leading artists, Quiros focuses on the somber, humble nature of the architecture within the wilds of the South American hillsides.