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 Ars moriendi. Ideas, ritos e imágenes de la muerte

Keywords: Colonial period, Historical painting, Juan Lovera, Latin America, Republic, Venezuela, Venezuelan painting.

Juan Lovera, Venezuelan painter, born in 1776 and dead in 1841, brings us a life displayed in times of changes in the culture of the Province of Caracas, part of the old Spanish colonial territory, which ended the 18th Century with the promise of a growing prosperity due to the projection of cocoa trading revenues. Lovera saw the end of his life through the uncertain path of a republic which walked unsteadily in its infancy. With this in mind, we will attempt to structure the available data on Juan Lovera, the Colonial artist, the Republican artist, but also as the committed citizen he was. Although the data around his actions and decisions is not abundant, we can take a tour that will throw, repeatedly, elements which will outlined him as an individual aware of his place and possibilities at different stages of his life. This will allow us to value his artistic work in a fairer dimension.