The Harwood welcomes students and teachers to visit the museum through 90-minute educator-guided experiences.
All tours are led by Teaching Artists and include a 45-minute art activity. Guided tours are available Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Self-guided tours are available during regular museum hours, Wednesday through Sunday from 11am-5pm.
All tours are aligned with National Common Core and Visual Art Standards as well as New Mexico State Core Standards, Social and Emotional Learning Core Competencies, and Studio Habits of Mind.
2024-2025 School Tour themes

Exploring Self
On this SEL-focused tour, students will explore how artists express their identity, cultural background, and values through visual art. This year we are learning about Luchita Hurtado, a Venezuelan-born American artist whose paintings and drawings explore the connection between human beings and the natural world.
Available through February 21, 2025

Storytelling Through Art
Students will develop visual literacy skills while exploring the work of modern Santero, Nicholas Herrera. Born and raised in El Rito, New Mexico, Herrera is a folk artist who uses storytelling to process difficult events in his life and honor his community, family, and cultural traditions.
Available through May 30, 2025

The Science of Color
Explore the science behind how artists use color in this STEAM tour. Students will be introduced to color theory and the light spectrum through conversations in front of art and a hands-on project. This tour will include the work of Charles Ross.
Available March 17 – September 5, 2025
Harwood Education is committed to supporting and engaging families through accessible and engaging art programming.
Family Art Lab is a monthly teaching artist-led workshop that combines a conversation in front of a work of art in the museum with a hands-on project in the Education Studio. Family-friendly community events like Lighting Ledoux, First Friday, Block Party, and Community Day offer art making and interactive activities for all ages. If you can’t make it to one of these events, every Sunday the museum is free to Taos County residents and youth under 18 are always free.
Upcoming Family Programs
21Feb1:30 pm3:00 pmFamily Art LabWorkshop
Event Details
Explore the museum with a Harwood Teaching Artist and create art inspired by Luchita Hurtado. This is one of the last chances to see
Event Details
Explore the museum with a Harwood Teaching Artist and create art inspired by Luchita Hurtado. This is one of the last chances to see the exhibition “Luchita Hurtado: Earth & Sky Interjected.”
This program is open to families or small groups with children and home school groups. Designed for ages 5-12 but all are welcome. Advanced registration recommended. $5 suggested donation per child. Includes free museum admission.
Please email education@harwoodmuseum.org for more information. Image courtesy of Harwood Museum of Art.
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Time
February 21, 2025 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Location
Fern Hogue Mitchell Education Center, Harwood Museum
238 Ledoux Street
23Feb1:30 pm3:00 pmFamily Art LabWorkshop
Event Details
Explore the museum with a Harwood Teaching Artist and create art inspired by Luchita Hurtado. This is one of the last chances to see
Event Details
Explore the museum with a Harwood Teaching Artist and create art inspired by Luchita Hurtado. This is one of the last chances to see the exhibition “Luchita Hurtado: Earth & Sky Interjected.”
This program is open to families or small groups with children and home school groups. Designed for ages 5-12 but all are welcome.
Advanced registration recommended. $5 suggested donation per child. Includes free museum admission.
Please email education@harwoodmuseum.org for more information. Image courtesy of Harwood Museum of Art.
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Time
February 23, 2025 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Location
Fern Hogue Mitchell Education Center, Harwood Museum
238 Ledoux Street
07Mar4:00 pm7:00 pmTeen Art Lab
Event Details
In conjunction with the Taos Public Library Teen Art Contest, the Harwood is offering drop-in studio time for teens. Join one of our Teaching Artists and make space to work
Event Details
In conjunction with the Taos Public Library Teen Art Contest, the Harwood is offering drop-in studio time for teens. Join one of our Teaching Artists and make space to work on your creative projects with full access to our studio supplies. This year’s theme is “Where We Live.”
Pay What You Can (Suggested $5). No one will be turned away.
NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.
El proyecto NEA Big Read es una iniciativa del National Endowment for the Arts (el Fondo Nacional para las Artes de Estados Unidos) en cooperación con Arts Midwest.
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Time
March 7, 2025 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
07Mar4:00 pm7:00 pmFirst Friday
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum. This First Friday enjoy screenings of Midnight Fire by Elizabeth Wald and
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum.
This First Friday enjoy screenings of Midnight Fire by Elizabeth Wald and Recuerdo: Land, Water, Art – A Portrait of Nicholas Herrera by Christopher Beaver.
Image: Fall Community Day, “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” September 21-June1 2025, Harwood Museum of Art. Photo: Shayla Blatchford Photography
Time
March 7, 2025 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
14Mar1:30 pm3:00 pmFamily Art Lab with TwirlWorkshop
Event Details
Twirl is bringing SPECTACOLOR to the Harwood! Discover the art of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, while exploring why and how we see colors and how to
Event Details
Twirl is bringing SPECTACOLOR to the Harwood! Discover the art of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, while exploring why and how we see colors and how to make and change them.
This program is open to families or small groups with children and home school groups. Designed for ages 5-12 but all are welcome.Advanced registration recommended. $5 suggested donation per child. Includes free museum admission.
Please email education@harwoodmuseum.org for more information. Image courtesy of Harwood Museum of Art. NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.
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Time
March 14, 2025 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Location
Fern Hogue Mitchell Education Center, Harwood Museum
238 Ledoux Street
14Mar6:30 pm8:00 pmCharles Ross: Mansions of the ZodiacFREE Community Celebration
Event Details
Celebrate the opening of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, which features work never exhibited before by this New Mexico-based artist. The works about sunlight,
Event Details
Celebrate the opening of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, which features work never exhibited before by this New Mexico-based artist. The works about sunlight, starlight, time, and planetary motion span critical moments in Ross’s nearly 60-year career as one of the preeminent land artists working today.
This FREE community event will feature music by Trey Donovan, site-specific dance by MovementLab and star gazing with Dr. Colin Nicholls from UNM-Taos.
About Charles Ross
Charles Ross (b. 1937, Philadelphia, PA) discovered his passion for making sculpture while studying mathematics at UC Berkeley, where he received his BA in Mathematics in 1960 and an MA in Art in 1962. Ross is a 2011 Guggenheim Fellow and recipient of the Andy Warhol Foundation Grant in 1999. He has also received grants from the NEA, the Thaw Charitable Trust, the McCune Charitable Foundation, The Frost Foundation, and many others for the construction of Star Axis. Ross has created 25 permanent solar spectrum artworks around the world including Solar Spectrum, at the Dwan Light Sanctuary, United World College, Montezuma, NM; Spectrum 14, Getty Center, Los Angeles, CA, 2024; Spectrum Chamber, Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), Hobart, Tasmania; Conversations with the Sun, Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan; and Spectrum 8, National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), Washington DC.
His artworks reside in the permanent collections of numerous institutions internationally, including the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France; the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY; and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Charles Ross, Mansions of the Zodiac: Cancer, 1973-76/2012, acrylic paint and collage using bakelite powder xeroxes of Verenberg photographic star atlas images on canvas, 190 x 63.5 inches. Courtesy of the artist.
more
Time
March 14, 2025 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
16Mar1:30 pm3:00 pmFamily Art Lab with TwirlWorkshop
Event Details
Twirl is bringing SPECTACOLOR to the Harwood! Discover the art of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, while exploring why and how we see colors and how to make
Event Details
Twirl is bringing SPECTACOLOR to the Harwood! Discover the art of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, while exploring why and how we see colors and how to make and change them.
This program is open to families or small groups with children and home school groups. Designed for ages 5-12 but all are welcome.Advanced registration recommended. $5 suggested donation per child. Includes free museum admission.
Please email education@harwoodmuseum.org for more information. Image courtesy of Harwood Museum of Art. NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.
more
Time
March 16, 2025 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Location
Fern Hogue Mitchell Education Center, Harwood Museum
238 Ledoux Street
23Mar1:00 pm4:00 pmTeen Art Lab
Event Details
In conjunction with the Taos Public Library Teen Art Contest, the Harwood is offering drop-in studio time for teens. Join one of our Teaching Artists and make space to work
Event Details
In conjunction with the Taos Public Library Teen Art Contest, the Harwood is offering drop-in studio time for teens. Join one of our Teaching Artists and make space to work on your creative projects with full access to our studio supplies. This year’s theme is “Where We Live.”
Pay What You Can (Suggested $5). No one will be turned away.
NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.
El proyecto NEA Big Read es una iniciativa del National Endowment for the Arts (el Fondo Nacional para las Artes de Estados Unidos) en cooperación con Arts Midwest.
more
Time
March 23, 2025 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
04Apr4:00 pm7:00 pmFirst Friday
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum. The April First Friday will celebrate the opening of Legacy
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum. The April First Friday will celebrate the opening of Legacy in Line: The Art of Gene Kloss, a collaboration with the Couse-Sharp Historic Site. Enjoy refreshments and learn printmaking with Harwood Teaching Artists.
Known for her prints that feature high contrast, rising diagonal lines, and ethereal regions of light, Kloss’s works reflect the spirit of the Southwest with a rare combination of precision and emotion. Her prints often captured the dramatic landscapes and sacred ceremonies of Native American communities, conveying both the physical beauty and spiritual depth of New Mexico. Kloss constantly pushed the boundaries of her medium, striving for the exact effects she sought in each piece.
Image: Gene Kloss, Untitled, c. 1930, watercolor, 9 3/4 x 14 3/16 in. Gift of Ila McAfee Turner.
more
Time
April 4, 2025 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
02May4:00 pm7:00 pmFirst Friday
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum! Image: Fall Community Day, “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” September 21-June1
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum!
Image: Fall Community Day, “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” September 21-June1 2025, Harwood Museum of Art. Photo: Shayla Blatchford Photography
Time
May 2, 2025 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Bring the Harwood Museum of Art into your home or classroom with these learning resources.

Harwood Education and Public Programs team curates a variety of adult education opportunities
These programs including tours, lecture series, gallery talks, films, concerts, and art workshops. Become a Member and enjoy a 20% discount on all programming.
Upcoming Adult Programs
07Mar4:00 pm7:00 pmFirst Friday
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum. This First Friday enjoy screenings of Midnight Fire by Elizabeth Wald and
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum.
This First Friday enjoy screenings of Midnight Fire by Elizabeth Wald and Recuerdo: Land, Water, Art – A Portrait of Nicholas Herrera by Christopher Beaver.
Image: Fall Community Day, “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” September 21-June1 2025, Harwood Museum of Art. Photo: Shayla Blatchford Photography
Time
March 7, 2025 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
14Mar6:30 pm8:00 pmCharles Ross: Mansions of the ZodiacFREE Community Celebration
Event Details
Celebrate the opening of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, which features work never exhibited before by this New Mexico-based artist. The works about sunlight,
Event Details
Celebrate the opening of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac, which features work never exhibited before by this New Mexico-based artist. The works about sunlight, starlight, time, and planetary motion span critical moments in Ross’s nearly 60-year career as one of the preeminent land artists working today.
This FREE community event will feature music by Trey Donovan, site-specific dance by MovementLab and star gazing with Dr. Colin Nicholls from UNM-Taos.
About Charles Ross
Charles Ross (b. 1937, Philadelphia, PA) discovered his passion for making sculpture while studying mathematics at UC Berkeley, where he received his BA in Mathematics in 1960 and an MA in Art in 1962. Ross is a 2011 Guggenheim Fellow and recipient of the Andy Warhol Foundation Grant in 1999. He has also received grants from the NEA, the Thaw Charitable Trust, the McCune Charitable Foundation, The Frost Foundation, and many others for the construction of Star Axis. Ross has created 25 permanent solar spectrum artworks around the world including Solar Spectrum, at the Dwan Light Sanctuary, United World College, Montezuma, NM; Spectrum 14, Getty Center, Los Angeles, CA, 2024; Spectrum Chamber, Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), Hobart, Tasmania; Conversations with the Sun, Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan; and Spectrum 8, National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), Washington DC.
His artworks reside in the permanent collections of numerous institutions internationally, including the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France; the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY; and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Charles Ross, Mansions of the Zodiac: Cancer, 1973-76/2012, acrylic paint and collage using bakelite powder xeroxes of Verenberg photographic star atlas images on canvas, 190 x 63.5 inches. Courtesy of the artist.
more
Time
March 14, 2025 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
15Mar10:30 am1:30 pmGallery Talk + Zodiac Luncheonwith Charles Ross
Event Details
You are invited to enjoy a day of artistic inspiration and culinary celebration with the pioneering land artist Charles Ross as part of the opening of Charles
Event Details
You are invited to enjoy a day of artistic inspiration and culinary celebration with the pioneering land artist Charles Ross as part of the opening of Charles Ross: Mansions of the Zodiac. This Director’s Circle event kicks off with a gallery talk at the Harwood Museum of Art with Charles Ross, followed by a convivial luncheon to honor the artist The New York Times has called “…an artist of cosmic ambition.” Guests will be served a Spring Equinox-inspired luncheon with stellar desserts in an historic adobe home near the museum. Extremely limited tickets available.
Purchase tickets here.
Director’s Circle Members: $160
General Admission: $200
Sponsor a Table! Artist Table: $5,000 | Director Table: $2,500 | Curator Table $1,500
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Time
March 15, 2025 10:30 am - 1:30 pm
29Mar5:30 pm7:30 pmMessiaen MusingsTCMG Concert
Event Details
Pianist Debbie Ayers and clarinetist Graeme Steele Johnson return to TCMG for a multimedia concert with compositions by Andrew List, Olivier Messiaen and Andrew Norman. This program will include beautiful
Event Details
Pianist Debbie Ayers and clarinetist Graeme Steele Johnson return to TCMG for a multimedia concert with compositions by Andrew List, Olivier Messiaen and Andrew Norman. This program will include beautiful projections of Paul Gauguin’s lush art and a special arrangement of Messiaen’s Vocalise.
Stephanie Sant-Ambrogio, violin; Walter Haman, cello; Graeme Steele Johnson, clarinet; Debra Ayers, piano
Time
March 29, 2025 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
30Mar3:00 pm5:00 pmMessiaen MusingsTCMG Concert
Event Details
Pianist Debbie Ayers and clarinetist Graeme Steele Johnson return to TCMG for a multimedia concert with compositions by Andrew List, Olivier Messiaen and Andrew Norman. This program will include beautiful
Event Details
Pianist Debbie Ayers and clarinetist Graeme Steele Johnson return to TCMG for a multimedia concert with compositions by Andrew List, Olivier Messiaen and Andrew Norman. This program will include beautiful projections of Paul Gauguin’s lush art and a special arrangement of Messiaen’s Vocalise.
Stephanie Sant-Ambrogio, violin; Walter Haman, cello; Graeme Steele Johnson, clarinet; Debra Ayers, piano
Time
March 30, 2025 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
04Apr4:00 pm7:00 pmFirst Friday
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum. The April First Friday will celebrate the opening of Legacy
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum. The April First Friday will celebrate the opening of Legacy in Line: The Art of Gene Kloss, a collaboration with the Couse-Sharp Historic Site. Enjoy refreshments and learn printmaking with Harwood Teaching Artists.
Known for her prints that feature high contrast, rising diagonal lines, and ethereal regions of light, Kloss’s works reflect the spirit of the Southwest with a rare combination of precision and emotion. Her prints often captured the dramatic landscapes and sacred ceremonies of Native American communities, conveying both the physical beauty and spiritual depth of New Mexico. Kloss constantly pushed the boundaries of her medium, striving for the exact effects she sought in each piece.
Image: Gene Kloss, Untitled, c. 1930, watercolor, 9 3/4 x 14 3/16 in. Gift of Ila McAfee Turner.
more
Time
April 4, 2025 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
12Apr5:30 pm7:30 pmTaos School of Music on TourTCMG Concert
Event Details
TCMG is delighted to present for the second time on its series Taos School of Music faculty and alumni in spring performances. This continues the long tradition of collaboration with
Event Details
TCMG is delighted to present for the second time on its series Taos School of Music faculty and alumni in spring performances. This continues the long tradition of collaboration with TSofM, which for 60 summers has brought to Taos elite, early-career musicians and prepared them to be artistic leaders. Today, its 1,000+ alumni can be found in leading chamber music ensembles, orchestras, and teaching positions throughout the world. Details on the artists and program to be announced at a future date.
Time
April 12, 2025 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
13Apr3:00 pm5:00 pmTaos School of Music on TourTCMG Concert
Event Details
TCMG is delighted to present for the second time on its series Taos School of Music faculty and alumni in spring performances. This continues the long tradition of collaboration with
Event Details
TCMG is delighted to present for the second time on its series Taos School of Music faculty and alumni in spring performances. This continues the long tradition of collaboration with TSofM, which for 60 summers has brought to Taos elite, early-career musicians and prepared them to be artistic leaders. Today, its 1,000+ alumni can be found in leading chamber music ensembles, orchestras, and teaching positions throughout the world. Details on the artists and program to be announced at a future date.
Time
April 13, 2025 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
24Apr6:00 pm7:00 pmNicholas Herrera in Conversation with Carmella Padilla
Event Details
Sit down with Nicholas Herrera and award winning journalist Carmella Padilla for an intimate conversation about Herrera’s life and career. About Nicholas Herrera Born and raised in El Rito, New Mexico, Nicholas
Event Details
Sit down with Nicholas Herrera and award winning journalist Carmella Padilla for an intimate conversation about Herrera’s life and career.
About Nicholas Herrera
Born and raised in El Rito, New Mexico, Nicholas Herrera 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.
Herrera’s work is held in the collections of the American Folk Art Museum, New York, El Museo del Barrio, New York, the Autry Museum of the American West, Los Angeles, the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, N.M, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C.
About Carmella Padilla
Carmella Padilla is a journalist, author and editor who explores intersections in art, culture and history. She has published extensively in newspapers and magazines, including The Wall Street Journal, American Craft and El Palacio, and has written several books, including The Work of Art: Folk Artists in the 21st Century; El Rancho de las Golondrinas: Living History in New Mexico’s La Ciénega Valley; Low ‘n Slow: Lowriding in New Mexico; and The Chile Chronicles: Tales of a New Mexico Harvest. A native Santa Fean and multigenerational New Mexican, Padilla is a recipient of the New Mexico Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts and the Santa Fe Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Literary Arts. She is currently at work on a book highlighting the historic makers and movements in twentieth-century New Mexican furniture.
Image Courtesy of Beth Wald
This program is supported in part by New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and by the National Endowment for the Arts.
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Time
April 24, 2025 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
02May4:00 pm7:00 pmFirst Friday
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum! Image: Fall Community Day, “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” September 21-June1
Event Details
Join us from 4pm to 7pm the first Friday of every month for pay-what-you-wish extended hours at the museum!
Image: Fall Community Day, “Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero” September 21-June1 2025, Harwood Museum of Art. Photo: Shayla Blatchford Photography
Time
May 2, 2025 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
15May10:00 am11:00 amArtist Tour with Nicholas Herrera
Event Details
Join Artist Nicholas Herrera and Curator Nicole Dial-Kay for this special tour of his current exhibition Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero. Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero is a glimpse into the
Event Details
Join Artist Nicholas Herrera and Curator Nicole Dial-Kay for this special tour of his current exhibition Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero.
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.
more
Time
May 15, 2025 10:00 am - 11:00 am
18May2:00 pm3:00 pmArtist Tour with Nicholas Herrera
Event Details
Join Artist Nicholas Herrera and Curator Nicole Dial-Kay for this special tour of his current exhibition Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero. Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero is a glimpse into the
Event Details
Join Artist Nicholas Herrera and Curator Nicole Dial-Kay for this special tour of his current exhibition Nicholas Herrera: El Rito Santero.
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.
more
Time
May 18, 2025 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm

The Fern Hogue Mitchell Education Center
The Fern Hogue Mitchell Education Center is a dedicated area for art-making programs housed in a sun-filled space that was once the living room of the original home of Burt and Lucy Harwood.
In addition to the studio, the Sidney and Gladys Smith Children’s Art Gallery offers an extension gallery where student art can be showcased. Taos’ original children’s library, part of the Harwood Public Library from the 1920s to the 1990s was once housed in the studio. Thanks to the generosity of Orin and Stephanie Smith the studio has been restored to its original splendor and named for Stephanie’s grandmother, the beloved Taos schoolteacher, Fern Hogue Mitchell.

Contact Us
For more information or inquires please email education@harwoodmuseum.org
Harwood Education programs are made possible by the generous support of J3 Advised Fund, Fasken Foundation, Taos Community Foundation, Nusenda Credit Union, and 38 individuals. Harwood Education programs serve thousands of Taos youth and adults every year. Nearly all these programs are offered free of charge thanks to the generous support of our community.
Make a tax-deductible donation today to help art education thrive in our community