Majismo, a cultural phenomenon that embodied the popular aesthetic in Spain from the second half of the eighteenth century, served as a vehicle to "regain" Spanish heritage. As expressed in visual representations of popular types participating in traditional customs and wearing garments viewed as historically Spanish, majismo conferred on Spanish "citizens" the pictorial ideal of a shared national character.

In Framing Majismo, Tara Zanardi explores nobles' fascination with and appropriation of the practices and types associated with majismo, as well as...