Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero

Join Artist Nicholas Herrera and Curator Nicole Dial-Kay for this special tour of his current exhibition Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero. Space is limited. Purchase a ticket to reserve a spot.

Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero is a glimpse into the life and works of master santero Nicholas Herrera. Herrera, born and raised in El Rito, New Mexico, is a folk artist whose family was among the earliest settlers in the region. Claiming Spanish, Native American, and Mexican ancestry, Herrera identifies as mestizo and descends from farmers and outlaws, landowners and soldiers, craftsmen and artists. He grew up around the Spanish traditions of Northern New Mexico and came of age with a fast-paced lifestyle that resulted in a serious car accident at the age of 26. After awakening in the hospital and recovering from a coma, Herrera felt called to become a saint maker.

As a modern santero, Herrera creates bultos, retablos, and large-scale mixed media works, many of which detail rich and often challenging chapters in his storied life. Through varied mediums, this exhibition surveys Herrera’s personal identity, family history, relationship to place, and political ideology. Still a “village artist,” Herrera continues to reside, regenerate, and create on the land of his family.

Harwood Museum of Art is proud to exhibit the first solo museum exhibition of Nicholas Herrera, which was recently profiled in the New York Times.

Image courtesy of Beth Wald.

This program is supported in part by New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs.

Explore the exhibition “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” with a Harwood Teaching Artist, and be inspired to create your own work of art! This is a great opportunity to see the exhibition before it closes on June 1st.

Explore the exhibition “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” with a Harwood Teaching Artist, and be inspired to create your own work of art! This is a great opportunity to see the exhibition before it closes on June 1st.

Join Artist Nicholas Herrera and Curator Nicole Dial-Kay for this special tour of his current exhibition Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero. Space is very limited. Purchase a ticket to reserve a spot.

If you miss out on the tour, you can join Nicholas for a woodworking demonstration in the backyard from 3:30-4:30pm.

About the Exhibition 

Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero is a glimpse into the life and works of master santero Nicholas Herrera. Herrera, born and raised in El Rito, New Mexico, is a folk artist whose family was among the earliest settlers in the region. Claiming Spanish, Native American, and Mexican ancestry, Herrera identifies as mestizo and descends from farmers and outlaws, landowners and soldiers, craftsmen and artists. He grew up around the Spanish traditions of Northern New Mexico and came of age with a fast-paced lifestyle that resulted in a serious car accident at the age of 26. After awakening in the hospital and recovering from a coma, Herrera felt called to become a saint maker.

As a modern santero, Herrera creates bultos, retablos, and large-scale mixed media works, many of which detail rich and often challenging chapters in his storied life. Through varied mediums, this exhibition surveys Herrera’s personal identity, family history, relationship to place, and political ideology. Still a “village artist,” Herrera continues to reside, regenerate, and create on the land of his family.

Harwood Museum of Art is proud to exhibit the first solo museum exhibition of Nicholas Herrera, which was recently profiled in the New York Times.

Image courtesy of Beth Wald.

This program is supported in part by New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs.