Cabildo abierto del 22 de mayo de 1810

The portrait was painted in Chile in 1908, as requested by Ángel Justiniano Carranza, for the centennial of the May Revolution that would take place in 1810.

Subercaseaux mailed the following terms: ...if, as I hope, it is worthy of the matter, I resolve to undertake this work, warning you that if the conduct to the satisfaction, it will be worth fifteen thousand pesos in national currency, with the dimensions of the box four feet wide by three high.

[1]According to current European historicist, Subercaseaux tried to choose a defining moment, recreate the atmosphere and give the magnificence required.

He based his lighting and perspective studies on contemporary photos inside the Buenos Aires Cabildo, although it had been remodeled and was no longer similar to the colonial period.

The moment depicted is the one when Juan José Paso, who is the one that stands out from the crowd on the left, takes his turn to talk.