Santos Picturing the Holy

The European settlement of Northern America began in the Southwest in 1598. These Europeans found a barren land that was broken only by imposing mountains in a land they called Nueva Mexico. They did not find the wealth of gold or silver which occurred further south in Mexico. This isolated settlement became an agrarian pastoral society. They built towns and villages, each with a church or chapel. Franciscan friars, part of this settlement, began to evangelize the First Nation peoples and the King of Spain supported the newly baptized native Catholic and new colony. 

Saintly devotions traveled to Mexico, and circulated within the vast territory, transforming lives in the process. The belief is that God has assigned each of his angels and saints to individual tasks. There is a saint for every day of the year. This exhibition displays these devotions, transformations and explores the role of images in the construction…